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- THE LAND 
ACROSS THE SE 








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Copyright N"_ 



COPYRIGHT DEPOSrr. 



The Land Across the Sea 



By 



Estelle Ryan Snyder 



This little book is lovingly dedicated 
to my Mother 



Published by W. J. Snyder Publishing Co. 

1305 Ashland Block 

Chicago 



^ 






Copyright 1913 

W. J. Snyder Publishing Co. 

Chicago, Illinois 



All rights reserved 



/ 



/ 



©CI.A34T035 



The Land Across the Sea 



CHAPTER I. 

I WONDER how many of you from childhood, like the writer, 
have hoped to some day have the opportunity of visiting the 
lands across the sea. Come with me, in imagination, and we 
will board an ocean liner bound for Bremen, Germany, and 
cross the great Atlantic Ocean which separates the old from 
the new world. 

Such a hustling and bustling preparing for the long jour- 
ney. The hours fairly fly on wings. The days are woefully 
short in which to accomplish the "thousand and one" things 
which come up at the last moment. Friends and neighbors 
drop in to say '^bon voyage"; a few tears are shed and we are 
finally on our Avay. 

Upon our arrival in the great metropolis of New York we 
take careful inventory of what will be needed on a sea voyage. 
It being our first crossing we are obliged to purchase a steamer 
trunk and steamer caps. "We spend a very pleasant morning 
in the shops making our purchases. In the afternoon we go 
to Hoboken to have a peep at the great ship that is to bear ns 
across the w^ater. We are like children in our eager anticipa- 
tion, for remember it is our first view of a real ocean liner. 
Taking the subway to Hoboken we soon arrive at the pier 
where our vessel lies at anchor. Such a ' ' hurley-burley " of 
noise and confusion of teams, teamsters and endless trucks of 
luggage. You would think the entire population of Greater 
New York was moving. Threading our way through an ever- 
changing throng we arrive at the gangway, where we ask if 
we may go on board. Consent is courteously given. 

A friend familiar with foreign travel has given us some 
valuable information derived from his own personal experi- 
ence in fourteen crossings. To quote his own words: — 

''The first thing to do is to board the ship the day before 
sailing and secure your seats at table, steamer chairs, rugs, 



8 The Land Across the Sea • 

time for daily salt-water bath, etc. If you do this the day 
before sailing you will avoid confusion and secure better places 
at table and on deck. As most of your time is spent in your 
steamer chair on deck it is important to secure a pleasant 
place. 

''Now, you must make up your mind before starting that 
tipping is absolutely essential; it is expected and customary. 
You will be obliged to do as others do in this respect, and that 
is *tip,' and tip fairly liberally. For instance, when you go 
on board the day before sailing you ask for the chief steward. 
I usually give him a dollar and he gives me as good a table 
place as he has unreserved. Then you see the bath steward 
who asks at what hour you prefer your morning bath and 
when a preference is stated he has that hour arranged for 
you if it is not already reserved. Almost every one bathes 
daily in the salt water as it is one of the most beneficial 
attractions on board. Next see the deck steward and secure 
steamer chairs, rugs and a place on deck. The chairs will cost 
you $1 each, as will also each steamer rug. As the mornings 
and evenings are quite chilly and often very cold, you will 
need a rug to throw over you, especially when you take your 
afternoon siesta. The chairs and rugs are tagged with your 
name. You select either the south or north side of deck, 
whichever you prefer; your chair is placed in the space allotted 
to you and it remains there throughout the trip. The deck 
steward folds up your chair at night and stands it upright ; he 
also folds your rugs and carries them indoors, returning them 
to place for use in the morning. He has charge of your com- 
fort during the time you are on deck. You will tip this man 
a dollar or whatever more you feel inclined to give. 

"Now, the next person to see is your room steward. For 
each male passenger there is a steward and for the women a 
stewardess. It is customary to tip both steward and steward- 
ess if there are both men and women in your party. I always 
give my steward a dollar when we start on the trip and say, 
'You will receive a like amount when we reach the other side.' 
This will ensure good service, for your steward takes care of 



The Land Across the Sea 9 

your room and, if you are sea-sick, he is indispensable. I fol- 
low this same rule with my table steward and it always brings 
good results." 

We will follow our good friend Felix's advice and I am 
sure we will find it works excellently. At last we have made 
our rounds and seen the various stewards, checked our steamer 
trunk and several grips and seen them safely in our state- 
room. At the conclusion we feel that we have spent quite a 
busy hour. 

The next morning we rise early as this is the great day 
of sailing. We breakfast and hurry by way of the subway 
to Hoboken, for the great vessel leaves sharp at ten o'clock. 
We arrive at the pier at nine-thirty. There we find a happy, 
well-dressed, ever-increasing throng both on the pier and the 
ship. It is a beautiful scene. American flags wave gracefully 
in the crisp morning air. We drive past dozens of small stands 
where flowers and American flags are for sale. But we have 
already provided ourselves with small silk American flags, 
thanks to our good adviser, Felix. Taxis and autos of every 
description dash up to the curb and deposit their occupants. 
It is a busy and festive scene. Every one is happy and good 
natured. Messengers bearing huge boxes of flowers, baskets 
of fruits and bon bons hurry on board with last gifts for 
departing friends. To the left of the gangway on the pier 
stands a long line of stewards in attendance awaiting the 
arrival of the passengers. Upon our approach our room 
steward springs quickly forward and relieves us of our small 
luggage and conducts us to our stateroom where we remove 
our wraps. A moment later we are on deck anxious not to 
lose sight of the interesting scene above. A long blast of the 
ship's whistle warns visitors to go ashore. A last embrace and 
the visitors hurriedly file down the gangway and gather in a. 
long line on the pier where they stand waving flags and hand- 
kerchiefs to those on board. Bright sallies of wit are ex- 
changed between the pier and the ship. It is quite evident 
that a bride is on board for a group of young people gayly 
bombard a nearby couple who are suffused with blushes. Con- 



10 The Land Across the Sea 

fetti and rolls of gayly tinted paper-ribbon streamers are 
aimed with considerable accuracy and soon the embarrassed 
pair are surrounded by graceful festoons of bright ribbons. 
The sun shines brightly over all and not a ripple disturbs the 
serene placidity of the water. Truly an ideal day for sailing. 
Another short blast of the whistle and the gangplank is about 
to be pulled in when a man and woman are seen approaching 
in frantic haste. A moment's delay while they are being 
husOed, rather unceremoniously, on board and then the gang- 
plank is withdrawn, the pulsating engines of the ship begin 
to beat steadily, with musical rhythm, and the great steamer, 
with music gayly playing and flags waving majestically, moves 
slowly from the wharf. 

We view the great sea of uplifted faces, knowing not one 
will be the face of our own personal friend, for we are strangers 
in New York, embarking to a strange country. No one to say 
a last farewell or wish us God-speed. There is a little tighten- 
ing of the throat as we recall a similar scene enacted but a few 
short months ago when the Titanic, laden with a precious cargo 
of human souls, sailed proudly from her dock to the gay music 
of the band, with flags waving. There had been the same long 
line of eager uplifted faces bidding affectionate farewell to 
those who never returned. The tears rush unbidden to our 
eyes and blur the sea of faces from view. What the future has 
in store for us all God only knows. Then the question comes 
unbidden, a haunting, terrorizing fear that perhaps we have 
erred in taking our loved ones away from home to face 
unknown danger. Dashing the tears hurriedly away we see 
the faces are now far behind, and the entire scene is bathed 
in glorious sunlight, an awe inspiring picture. Glancing 
towards the blue sky above we see a fleecy white cloud riding 
majestically like the plumed crest of a wave, and our hearts 
leap with gladness and renewed faith for ''God is in his 
heaven and all is well." Ah, thou inscrutable fate, how useless 
for such an infinitesimal atom as self, in thy great universe, 
to seek to know the why and the wherefore ! Suffice it to 



The Land Across the Sea 



11 




The Liberty Statue in New York Harbor 



12 The Land Across the Sea 

know that thy law is infallible and that it is not necessary we 
should comprehend the magnificence of thy creation. 

The great city passes slowly, its massive buildings like 
grim sentinels in review. The weather is delightfully warm 
and the sea calm. The decks are crowded with passengers 
anxious for a last sight of land. The ''Goddess of Liberty," 
that awe-inspiring symbol of our great nation, is the last dis- 
cernible object to be seen after we pass out of the river and 
leave the harbor far behind, and we are well on our way. 

The day is spent reclining in the steamer chairs drinking 
in the glorious and invigorating sea air. We have a sheltered 
nook on the promenade deck. After twenty-four hours on the 
sea we feel like veteran sea dogs; the weather is so delight- 
fully serene that but few have experienced sea sickness. Even 
the "kiddies" have found their sea legs and are experiencing 
no uneasiness in the regions of their stomachs. It is fairly 
safe to assume that we will escape this dread malady. This 
is a great comfort, if you could but see the unfortunate ones 
make a hasty exit whenever the ship takes a little swell. 

"We are nicely located. Our stateroom is about the size 
of a small sardine can and we are wedged in as tightly as 
human ingenuity can devise. Four berths in a room, one for 
each. We take turns going to bed and getting up in the morn- 
ing. First one enters and retires and gayly calls "Next," and 
so on until we are all tucked in for the night. In the morning 
we repeat the performance, thus saving a serious entangle- 
ment of limbs. A brisk walk on deck followed by breakfast is 
the general rule. Every one walks incessantly in the morning 
for exercise. Nine times around the promenade deck of our 
vessel makes a mile. After breakfast the men wander away 
to the gymnasium where they show their strength and boast 
of their muscle and endurance. The women enjoy an hour or 
two reading on deck. At 11 o'clock in the morning the deck 
steward appears on deck with a very large tray with cups of 
hot bouillon. An assistant follows with a tray of appetizing 
sandwiches of all kinds. Almost every one takes a "snack," 
for the sea air gives one a tremendous appetite. In the after- 



The Land Across the Sea 13 

noon we take a nap in our steamer chairs for the unaccus- 
tomed intake of ozone into our stifled lungs has made us all 
very drowsy. And such a nap as we have. At four in the 
afternoon the steward again appears on the scene but this time 
he has afternoon tea, which is really delicious. The boy follows 
with all kinds of German ''coffee-kuken" and small cakes. 
Dinner is served in the evening from six to eight. The even- 
ing meal is the gala event of the day as every one dresses for 
the occasion; the band plays and it is a most enjoyable hour. 
After dinner every one walks again for exercise. Later some 
play cards while others enjoy music in the parlors, each one 
pursuing that which suits his fancy. This is a word picture 
of each day on the voyage. 

The nights on deck are most beautiful for we have a full 
moon which lights up the sea as bright as day. We stand 
tonight at the ship's prow watching the great volume of water 
displaced by the ship as she plows her way through the billowy 
depths. We are attracted by bright globules of phosphorous 
light, some of them the size of a large orange, others smaller. 
As the water is flung heavily from the prow these light globules 
come to the surface of the water, glow brilliantly for the frac- 
tion of a second and then disappear to be followed by a con- 
tinual stream of globules. This phenomena is a peculiar specie 
of piscine life which, when disturbed in the water, emits a 
phosphorescent glow similar to the firefly, or what we used to 
call in our childhood days the ''lightning bug," only the light 
is very much larger and much more brilliant. The Captain 
tells us that on a dark night he has seen these globules light up 
the sea for miles. Truly a most remarkable sight. 

It is morning of another beautiful day. We look across 
the great expanse of water and way over yonder in the distance 
we see a spout of water rise from the sea a little distance from 
the ship. Now we are all attention ; other spouts nearby con- 
vince us that we are passing a school of whales. Watching 
closely as we come nearer we can plainly discern the huge 
bodies rise to the surface after they have emitted a great 
stream of water. There are probably a dozen or more and we 



14 The Land Across the Sea 

watch until we distance them. "We have seen quite a number 
of flying fish. These are fish that really leave the water and 
fly through the air a foot or so above the water, dropping back 
into the water after a flight of 25 or 30 feet. 

Today we are going to take a trip through the interior of 
our great vessel. A most remarkable journey we find it and 
well worth while. I say journey advisedly for we are going 
many feet below the water line. We naturally have a great 
curiosity to see how the other half live on board ship, the men 
who toil that we may sit in ease and safety on deck. With the 
chief engineer as pilot our little party is conducted to the 
engine rooms where the great engines throb and pant like 
gigantic living monsters fretting at leash. Our ship is not the 
greatest liner afloat, like the lost Titanic, for instance, but it 
is a very large vessel, being of 17,000 tons. It is large enough, 
goodness knows, for it is a small city in itself. It has accom- 
modations for 450 first-cabin passengers, 300 second and 1,395 
steerage. The ship is propelled by quadruple engines, each 
working separately and independently of the other. In case 
of a breakage of any of these four engines the disabled engine's 
piston-rod is released and any or all of the other three engines 
operate independent of the disabled one. The engine rooms are 
safeguarded by nineteen bulkheads. These bulkheads are mas- 
sive iron doors that are lowered quickly in case of accident. 
These doors are lowered and raised daily to see that they are 
operating perfectly. In case of a collision these nineteen 
bulkhead doors can be lowered instantly either from the Cap- 
tain's bridge or the engine room, thus enclosing the engine 
room in a waterproof compartment. Every piece of machinery 
on the entire ship is in duplicate, the reserve pieces being kept 
in convenient position for immediate use in case of emergency. 
It requires forty gallons of oil a day to lubricate the parts of 
machinery and we are told this is a very small amount. A 
splendidly equipped miniature repair shop adjoins the engine 
room where broken parts of machinery can be repaired. It 
would take a skilled mechanician to try and give the multi- 
tudinous parts of the great mechanism that operates the ship. 



The Land Across the Sea 15 

It is a stupendous achievement, this living, wonderful mechan- 
ism that permits man to become master of navigation. From 
the engine room we go to the furnace room, that inferno where 
men work in an almost unlivable temperature feeding the 
hungry maw of the furnaces. Imagine feeding 250 tons of 
coal into these monsters each day of twenty-four hours. To 
perform this feat requires the services of forty-two stokers. 
These men work in three shifts. Four hours on duty followed 
by eight hours off. The furnace fires are cleaned out and 
raked clear of clinkers twice a day. The draft is almost strong 
enough when the furnace doors are open to sweep a man into 
the fiery pit. The heat is terrific. The gas rising from the 
raked clinkers is suffocating. The stokers work with a wet 
towel around their throat one corner of which they keep in 
their mouth. 

We then leave the engine rooms and furnaces and mount 
the steep little iron ladders until we reach the floors where the 
kitchens are operated. We find everything spick and span, 
with a vast army of cFefs and under-chefs. The potatoes are 
pared and rinsed by machinery, the eggs are boiled in an auto- 
matic electric m-achine which turns the eggs out when cooked 
the desired length of time, and there are so many other mar- 
velous time and labor-saving devices that it makes the house- 
wife gasp for breath. 

After seven days of delightful ocean travel we sight land 
and are soon approaching the shores of England, where we 
will land passengers before proceeding on our way. We enter 
the harbor of Plymouth, England, about 10:30 at night, and 
we are amazed to see the great play of searchlights which 
light up every object in the harbor, and, upon inquiry, we 
find that a man of war lies at anchor and that the great play 
of the searchlight is to prevent the Germans from stealing a 
march on the English by entering their harbor under cover 
of darkness. The Englishman lives in constant dread of his 
German cousin and ''sleeps" with one eye open to be ready, 
in case the necessity should arise, to prevent Germany seizing 



16 The Land Across the Sea 

their country. A tender slips alongside and the passengers 
wishing to depart at Plymouth are taken off by the tender 
and we soon are on our way. 

The next morning at daylight we see the shores of sunny 
France and all the passengers who desire to land at Cherbourg 
are taken off by tender and conveyed to their destination. 
The following morning, the ninth day of our journey, we reach 
the German port of Bremerhaven, where our steamer lands her 
passengers at the docks without the aid of a tender and we 
get our first view of the '' Fatherland. '^ An hour's ride from 
Bremerhaven to Bremen and we reach the ''City of Flowers." 
Bremen is situated in the northwestern part of Germany, and 
is a city noted for its cleanliness and profusion of beautiful 
flowers. Almost every residence has boxes of flowers adorning 
every window and the tiny grass plots in front are gay with 
brilliant blooms. But, much to our disappointment, we have 
not yet seen anything that would indicate that we are traveling 
in a foreign country, for Bremen is a city like many of our 
own at home, with good paved streets, handsome buildings 
and spacious residences. During the hour's ride from Bre- 
merhaven to Bremen we pass through a very beautiful agricul- 
tural country, a duplicate of those you will see in any fertile 
farming district. The farmhouses are neat and, instead of 
being built of wood, as is prevalent in our own country, they 
are either cement or brick. Scattered here and there you will 
notice an occasional outhouse with a turf roof, but they are 
not common ; and if you should awaken from sleep, not know- 
ing where you were, you would have to be told you were 
traversing the German Empire and not Pennsylvania or Illi- 
nois. The people dress the same as we do, except in the rural 
districts, where they dress more like the farmer of our own 
country. 

The most interesting feature of Bremen is the old cathedral, 
which was built in the eighth century. This building has 
seen many vicissitudes ; it has been burned down several times 
and rebuilt, but at present it stands as a lasting monument to 
man's perseverance. There are many marvelous carvings and 



■^ 



The Land Across the Sea 17 

paintings of great interest, and several very beautiful bronze 
doors; but the principal thing for which this cathedral is 
famous is its lead vaults, which consist of a small room which 
was utilized during the tenth century as a storehouse for the 
sheets of lead that were used for covering the roofs of the 
cathedral. By accident the discovery was made that in sev- 
eral coffins placed there the corpses were not decayed, but had 
dried up. This phenomena is explained by the particularly dry 
air which entirely absorbs the moisture. In this room six of 
these corpses are shown to visitors for a small fee. The caskets 
are open and the contents can be plainly seen and present a 
most extraordinary sight. They have the appearance of 
mummies, the skin being shriveled and shrunken, but the 
contour of the bodies remains intact. They range in age from 
200 to 450 years. This lead vault is one of the most remark- 
able sights to be seen in Germany. 

Other points of interest in Bremen are the old Gothic council 
house, with the famous wine cellar below it; the townhall, the 
merchants ' house, and the old and new exchange. The manufac- 
turing establishments consist of tobacco and cigar factories, sugar 
refineries, rice mills, iron factories, machine works, rope and sail 
works, and shipbuilding yards. Bremen's geographical situation 
makes it the emporium for Hanover, Brunswick, Hesse, and 
other countries traversed by the Weser River, and, next to Ham- 
burg, it is the principal seat of the export, import and emigra- 
tion trade of Germany. 

Bremen is a free city of Germany, an independent member 
of the empire, one of the three Hanse towns, on the Weser, about 
50 miles from its mouth. It covers a territory of 98 square 
miles, besides which it possesses the port of Bremerhaven, at the 
mouth of the river. 

In 788 Charlemagne made Bremen a bishopric ; it was after- 
wards made an archbishopric. At the end of the fourteenth cen- 
tury it became a free imperial city. The constitution is in most 
respects republican. The legislative authority is shared by a 
Senate of eighteen citizens, elected for life, and an Assembly of 



18 The Land Across the Sea 

150 citizens, elected for six years. The executive lies with the 
Senate and senatorial committees. 

One of the peculiar characteristics of the natives in this sec- 
tion of Germany, particularly in the proximity of Bremen, is their 
marked antipathy for Jews. No Jew is allowed to settle in 
Bremen. The Bremens consider themselves of much higher caste 
than the people of the middle and southern provinces of Ger- 
many. The class distinctions are very marked in Bremen par- 
ticularly, as it is a city of great wealth. 

From Bremen we take the train en route for Cologne — spelled 
in German as Koln, with two dots over the ''o. " It is a five-hour 
ride and one of considerable interest because the trains are so 
entirely different from those we are accustomed to at home, and 
we are greatly amused by our many mistakes in adjusting our- 
selves to the newness of it all. The railway engines are a great 
deal the same as our own ; if anything, they are a little larger. 
But the coaches, instead of having entrance doors at either end, 
like the American coach, are divided into small compartments 
with side entrances. Six people are supposed to occupy a com- 
partment and each train carries four classes of passengers; the 
fare being according to the class traveled. We travel second 
class, as everyone but the very wealthy people travel that way, 
and we find it fairly satisfactory. We are surprised at the abso- 
lute indifference of the German railroad employes toward their 
passengers ; they never deign to call a station or give any infor- 
mation whatever, consequently traveling in Germany is largely a 
matter of luck as to whether you reach your proper destination 
or are taken miles beyond because of your ignorance of the vari- 
ous stopping places and the unusual custom of never being told 
where you are. We who are accustomed to our own palatial 
trains in America, with obsequious attendants and every modern 
convenience and comfort, can scarcely reconcile ourselves to the 
German method of traveling. One is obliged to sit in a compart- 
ment touching the knees with every Tom, Dick and Harry that 
happens to be on the train with you; thus there is no privacy 
whatever. For a short distance this is of little import, but if 
one travels for any number of hours it is far from agreeable, 



The Land Across the Sea 



19 




Cologne and Bridge of Boats, Showing the Spires of Dom Cathedral 



20 The Land Across the Sea 

to say the least. True, there are compartments for Frauen 
(women) and smoking compartments for Herren (men), but it 
is quite frequently the case that, for lack of space, parties of 
men and women are ruthlessly broken up and the women obliged 
to ride apart from their husbands or male escorts. This is a 
decidedly unpleasant feature of continental travel in being forced 
to submit to discomfort or buy a first class compartment for one 's 
party. If the party is sufficiently large, say, four or five, to 
afford this luxury, all well and good; but if man and wife are 
traveling alone the discomfort and inconvenience is so marked 
as to mar one 's pleasure. 

Twenty-two miles before we reach Cologne we pass through 
the beautiful city of Dusseldorf. It is a town of Prussia, in 
the Rhenish province, situated on the right bank of the Rhine. 
It is one of the most attractive cities in the Rhine valley. We are 
not going to stop at Dusseldorf, but we can see as we pass through 
that it is an important railway and steamboat center. It has 
quite a number of handsome public buildings and several re- 
markable churches. It is quite an art center, for here is found a 
fine academy of art. It has the honor of having founded a 
school of painting, named for the city, and its pupils embrace 
many distinguished men and women. 

Cologne, a city of Rhenish Prussia, is situated on the left 
bank of the Rhine, forming, in connection with Deutz, a fortress 
of the first rank. The old fortifications, dating from the middle 
ages, are, or have been recently, swept away, new works being 
constructed. There are many fine old buildings as well as ex- 
cellent modern ones ; the churches, in particular, are interesting. 
The most important edifice of all is the cathedral known as the 
Dom; it was begun in 1248, and during the French invasion 
Napoleon had the audacity to use this magnificent building in 
which to stable his horses. The spires of the Dom are noted for 
their splendid architectural beauty. The trade for which Cologne 
is famous is the manufacture of the celebrated ''eau de Cologne." 
The trade in this commodity is very great. Other manufactures' 
embrace sugar, tobacco, glue, carpets, leather, machinery and 
chemicals. 



The Land Across the Sea 



21 




CoBLENz From Above the Rhine Bridge 



22 The Land Across the Sea 

Leaving Cologne we traverse the Rhine River — the Rhine 
famous in song and story. How many legends have we heard of 
the wondrous beauties of the Rhine ! Its old castles crumbling 
to decay. The next city of interest is Coblenz, a large city south 
of Cologne. 

Coblenz is the capital of Rhenish Prussia. It is a fortified 
town and lies in an angle betweeen the Rhine and the Moselle 
rivers. A pontoon bridge over the Rhine connects Coblenz with 
the great fortress of Ehrenbreitstein. This, together with other 
fortifications, renders the city one of the strongest fortifications 
in Germany. Over 100,000 men can be accommodated at this 
place. The important trade of Coblenz is Rhine and Moselle 
wines. 

Ehrenbreitstein is situated on a precipitous rock nearly 400 
feet above the confluence of the IMoselle and Rhine rivers. It is 
inaccessible on three sides. The fortifications were erected in 
1816-26, at a cost of $6,000,000, and can accommodate a garrison 
of 14,000 men and room for stores to last an army of 60,000 for 
a year. 

Ehrenbreitstein castle is one of the famous castles of Ger- 
many. 

Following the Rhine River, traveling south, we come to the 
interesting city of Worms, in the Grand Duchy of Hesse. Worms 
is 25 miles south of Mainz and 20 miles northwest of Heidelberg. 
The Romanesque cathedral, built in the twelfth century, is a 
magnificent structure with four round towers and two large 
domes. This is the city made famous by Martin Luther. There 
is a splendid monument to Luther, consisting of a colossal statue 
on a raised platform surrounded by figures of precursors of, or 
persons directly connected with, the Reformation. At Worms 
was held the famous diet in 1521, at which Luther defended his 
doctrines before Emperor Charles and an august assemblage. 

History informs us that Martin Luther, the German reformer, 
was born in 1483 at Eisleben, Saxony, and died in 1546. He was 
of poor parentage, his father being a miner. When but twenty 
years of age he graduated as master of philosophy at Erfut, in 
Thuringia. In 1505 he entered the monastery of the Augustin- 



The Land Across the Sea 



23 




CoBLENZ, Ehrenbreitstein, From Above Thal 



2i: 



The Land Across the Sea 




Ehrenbreitstein Castle 



The Land Across the Sea 25 

ians at Erfurt and in 1507 was consecrated priest. In 1508, by 
the influence of his patron, Staupitz, who was district vicar of 
the order, he was made professor of philosophy in the new Uni- 
versit}^ of Wittenberg. At first he lectured upon the philosophy 
of Aristotle, but soon turned his attention to the Bible. His lec- 
tures on this subject attracted so much attention that Staupitz 
prevailed upon him to preach regularly in the monastery church 
at Wittenberg. In 1512, upon his return from a visit to Rome 
in the interests of his order, he was made doctor of theology and 
began his famous lecture on Paul's Epistles. His first original 
work, the Exposition of the Seven Penitential Psalms, was pub- 
lished in 1517. Meanwhile he had been made district vicar of 
the Augustinian order and now preached not only in the convent 
chapel, but also in the parish church. During these years he 
had worked zealously for the church and in the interests of his 
order. But in 1517 a certain Dominican priest, Johann Tetzel, 
appeared in the vicinity of Wittenberg selling indulgences, the 
proceeds of which were to go toward the building of St. Peter's. 
Just at this time the dedication of the Schloss-kirke was being 
celebrated at Wittenberg. It was customary upon such days to 
nail upon the church door bulletins of general interest to the 
parish. On the evening before the fete-day Luther published 
upon the door of the Schloss-kirke his ninety-five theses which 
led to the movement known as the Protestant Reformation. 
These theses were called forth by Tetzel 's abuse of the church 
doctrine regulating indulgences. Their tone was, however, mod- 
erate, and it seems that at this time Luther contemplated to 
break with the church. But by means of the press the theses 
were scattered with remarkable rapidity through Europe and all 
the continent was soon plunged into a tumult of controversy. 
Luther, meanwhile, devoted himself to the further study of the 
Bible, church history and canon law, in order to defend the posi- 
tion he had taken. His study resulted in his drifting farther 
and farther from the church. His public utterances and writings 
became bolder and he was soon attacking the entire system and 
body of teachings of the Church of Rome. At first the Pope 
did not regard the matter as of serious import ; but at length. 



26 



The Land Across the Sea 







#- 



S 



^>Y 




Martin Luther's Monument at Worms 



The Land Across the Sea 



27 




Luther's Tree, Worms 



28 The Land Across the Sea 

being convinced tliat Luther 's influence was becoming dangerous, 
issued a bull against him and his friends. His writings were 
condemned as heretical and he himself, if he did not recant his 
errors in sixty days, was to be seized and sent to Rome to be tried 
for heres}^ Luther publicly burned this communication. In 
1521 the Diet of Worms, an assembly of the princes, nobles and 
clergy of Germany, was convened by the Emperor Charles V 
to deliberate upon state affairs in general and especially upon 
matters touching the great religious controversy. Luther was 
summoned before this body and called upon to recant his errors. 
Refusing to do so, he was pronounced a heretic and outlaw, but 
was allowed to depart in safety. Frederick, elector of Saxony, 
conveyed him privately to the Wartburg castle, where he re- 
mained for ten months in seclusion and translated the New Testa- 
ment into German. Meanwhile serious troubles arose from the 
excesses of fanatical professed followers of Luther. Castles and 
monasteries were sacked and horrible outrages were perpe- 
trated. Although a legal outlaw, Luther now came forth and 
temporarily checked the disturbance. He then resumed his work 
in the church and university, and when, several years later, the 
trouble broke out afresh, made a tour through the neighboring 
towns preaching a crusade against the image-breakers. His his- 
tory from this time is identical with that of the Reformation 
(which see). The rapidity with which his doctrines gained 
ground was due, it is thought, as much to his hymns as to his 
preaching. The most famous of these, ''A Mighty Fortress Is 
Our God, ' ' is sometimes known as the battle hymn of the Refor- 
mation. In 1524 Luther married Katharine von Bora, a former 
nun, who for several years had been a believer in his doctrines. 
In the same year he established a school at Eisleben. From 
1526 to 1529 he Avas engaged in the preparation of a new church 
service. His translation of the Bible in 1534 permanently estab- 
lished the literary language of Germany. 



The Land Across the Sea 29 



CHAPTER II. 

WE will now turn our attention to the scenery along the Rhine 
River. We have heard much of the beauties of this famous 
river that, of course, we are eagerly anticipant. To one who is 
practical, and not enamored by crumbling ruins in the last 
stages of decay which need the utmost stretch of the imagination 
to invest them with their former supposed grandeur, the Rhine 
River, save w^ith one or two exceptions, is a disappointment and 
becomes mediocre when compared with the beautiful St. Law. 
rence River of Canada, w^ith its ' ' Thousand Islands, ' ' or with the 
best parts of the Hudson River. The most beautiful spot on the 
Rhine River, known as Lurlei Rock, is very imposing and a truly 
magnificent spectacle ; but not one whit greater or more magnifi- 
cent than our own Royal Gorge of Colorado. 

Occasionally we see an old castle in a fairly good state of 
preservation. Before I had the opportunity of seeing, with my 
own eyes, the castles of Europe, I had pictured wondrous old 
ruins and surrounded them with a romantic sentiment that en- 
tirely vanished when once viewed. Save for a few turrets and a 
tower or two, the old Spanish missions of California would make 
some of the castles of Germany suffer by comparison. I have 
gone through many cathedrals and buildings, centuries old, and 
found them damp, mouldy and with a very unpleasant and un- 
healthy odor. 

I have no desire to depreciate the beauty of the Rhine River 
scenery ; I merely wish to disillusionize the reader who, like my- 
self, undoubtedly imagined that the Rhine is unsurpassable. My 
own personal impression of this river was one of intense disap- 
pointment. I have traveled so extensively, seeing all that there 
is to see in this country from the Atlantic to the Pacific, from the 
Gulf of Mexico to Alaska, and having seen the wonders of our 
own country, which, in my humble opinion, are incomparable, 



30 



The Land Across the Sea 




An Old Chateau Xear Godsberg 



The Land Across the Sea 31 




An Old Castle on the Ehine 



32 The Land Across the Sea 

I probably expected to see something too marvelous for nature 
to produce. The water of the Rhine is not clear and transparent, 
as, for instance, is that of the St. Lawrence, but is more like the 
Mississippi or Missouri rivers, being muddy and roily. It is a 
winding river, weaving its way in and out in continuous curves, 
surrounded on both sides of the stream by the great vineyards of 
Germany, of world-wide fame, from whence come the popular 
Rhine wines. 

One of the peculiarities of vineyard growing in Germany is 
that the best grapes are grown on the slate-covered slopes of the 
small range of mountains lying on either side of the Rhine River. 
Here the vineyards thrive and produce grapes from which the 
finest Rhine wine is made. This is the great industry of the 
Rhine province. 

Another noticeable feature of this part of Germany in the 
locality of the Rhine is the fact that one sees no wheat or corn, 
or any other grain growing, as in our own agricultural districts. 
Instead we see beans, cabbage, a few potatoes, beets and other 
small vegetables; what we would term in this country "garden 
truck." All of the wheat and grain that is raised comes from 
the northern part of Germany ; in the middle and southern part 
we find the small vegetable beans for pickling (which is a great 
industry), cabbage for sauer-kraut and beets for sugar. 

To our surprise, we see no horses, outside of the large cities. 
They are very scarce and costly. The farmer tills his fields with 
oxen. There is very little dairying, and but little poultry. But- 
ter is sold at an exorbitant price, as is also milk. This is posi- 
tively not a dairying country, as there is no pasturage for horse 
or cow; you will ride many miles in some portions of Germany 
without seeing a horse. You will see women walking beside a 
cart drawn by a dog or the family cow. You will see men toiling 
in the fields tilling the soil with their good old friend, the family 
cow — but no horse will you find. The people walk. There are 
no tramcars in the smaller towns, and the villages are spoken of 
as so many minutes' or hours' walk instead of miles. As, for 
instance, if you would ask, ''How far is the next town?" the re- 
ply would be, "An hour's walk." 



The L.^js^d Across the Sea 



33 




The Entrance to a Fortified Village Near the Rhine 



34 



The Land Across the Sea 




The Lurlei Kock on the Rhine 



The Land Across the Sea 



35 




Suspended Bridge in Koyal Gorge, Colorado, U. tt. A, 



36 The Land Across the Sea 

If you are a keen observer you will have noticed, while pass- 
ing through the smaller towns and coming in contact with the 
peasants of various localities, the great number of peasant women 
that are afflicted with goitre. This disease is of the throat and 
is caused by an enlargement of the thyroid gland. When it ap- 
pears without being inherited it is supposed to be caused, in 
most cases, by impurity of potable water. Upon inquiry I was 
told that the cause of such prevalency of this dread throat trouble 
was caused by the peasant women carrying such heavy burdens 
on their heads ; in order to balance huge bundles on their heads 
the women must hold the head and neck very rigid ; this is said 
to strain the delicate glands of the throat and to produce goitre. 
Nearly every other peasant woman, you might say, is more or 
less afflicted with goitre ; they evidently do not realize the cause, 
for, regardless of the result, they carry on their heads burdens 
that would tax the strength of a strong man, for miles. 

We will follow the Rhine River in its course until we reach 
the interesting city of ]\Iannheim, which is in the Grand Duchy 
of Baden. It is situated on the right bank of the Rhine near 
the confluence of that river with the Neckar. Here we find a 
very fine, extensive harbor and docks, for this is the chief com- 
mercial center of the upper Rhine. 

^lannheim is a beautiful, well-laid-out city; its streets are 
broad and well paved; residences imposing and of all styles of 
architecture. There are several very magnificent churches and 
many fine public buildings, public squares and parks. This city, 
like Frankfort, has a very large Jewish population. 

To one who has always lived in a metropolis all large cities 
bear a striking similarity to each other. Most of them have good 
streets, handsome public buildings, fine residences and the gen- 
eral air of prosperity and progress pleasing to the traveler. But 
to really touch the pulse of a nation's people one must leave the 
beaten track of the cities, where the people have had the advan- 
tages of education, culture and opportunity, and strike off into 
the byways — the little, unfrequented villages, unspoiled by the 
march of time and the lust for gold. There only can be found 
the simple life, and there only can one study to the heart's con- 
tent humble types of humanity. There has been so much said 



The Land Across the Sea 37 

about the scarcity of unfrequented villages and places of interest 
on the continent that we feared none could be found by one un- 
used to foreign travel. 

Let us leave Mannheim, the city beautiful, and cross into 
Khenish Bavaria. Only fifteen miles from the progressive city 
of Mannheim I will show you the quaintest and humblest little 
village imaginable. We get off at the station of Mutterstadt and 
we find that the village is a good mile and a half from the sta- 
tion; there is an old mail cart, drawn by a decrepit, bony horse 
that looks as though he was physically unable to draw any kind 
of a load, hitched beside the station. This is the first horse we 
have seen, outside of the large cities, since we landed in Ger- 
many. We view the vehicle with considerable curiosity, and as 
the old mail carrier clatters down the station platform with his 
mail bags on his shoulders we ask him to give us a lift to Mutter- 
stadt. He grins amiably and consents to do so. We pay his fee 
and clamber inside the tiny cart, which is like a miniature bus 
and is all enclosed. We bump our heads on the top of the cart 
and our knees become hopelessly tangled, but we consider it a 
lark and soon we are trundling merrily over the finest pike road 
imaginable. Ah, now we are beginning to see something really 
worth while. There is an old peasant woman over yonder to our 
right ; she is driving a span of oxen. How peaceful and pastoral 
the scene ! The air is fragrant and fresh and we enjoy every 
moment of the ride in the crazy old cart. We pass peasants 
trudging on foot, who gape at us curiously. Soon we arrive at 
Mutterstadt. Reaching the confines of the village, we get out of 
the cart and walk briskly down the narrow, crooked streets that 
are painfully clean. It is the neatest, cleanest little spot you ever 
saw; it reminds us of the picture "ad" of ''Spotless Town" of 
Sapolio renown. The streets, which are very narrow and wind 
in and out, are paved with cobblestones. The peasants all line 
up on the sidewalk to have a look at the visitors, for strangers 
are so rare that they are of as much interest to these humble 
peasants as a circus parade is to the ordinary school child. 

We are shown the oldest building in the village; it was at 
one time a Lutheran church and was built in the fifteenth cen- 
tury. It is now used as a police station. The man shown in the 



38 



The Land Across the Sea 




A German Peasant Woman, Mutterstadt, and Her Home Over 200 

Years Old 



The Land Across the Sea 39 

accompanying picture is a police officer. He appointed himself 
as escort of honor for our party and conducted us all over the 
place. When he posed for this picture he was the most envied 
man in the village. 

The picture, with the old peasant woman taking in the scene, 
entirely ignorant of the fact that she is being photographed, is 
one of the oldest peasant houses in Mutterstadt, as it is over 200 
years old. As our ride has made us extremely hungry, we ask 
for a place to get a bite to eat and are conducted by our escort 
to a tiny inn consisting of one good-sized room with a bar, at- 
tended by a barmaid — the woman of the house. By this time 
everyone in the village has heard of our presence, and by the 
time we are seated at the one table in the barroom the doors and 
windows are crowded with a throng of villagers anxious to wit- 
ness the ''feeding of the animals." Even the old mail carrier 
trots in and asks if he may have the honor of conveying us back 
to the station. The dinner is a conglomeration of stew and dump- 
lings — name unknown, but quality fairly good — and we partake 
heartily. A fancy omelette follows, and heavy black coffee fol- 
lows that. When we come to settle our bill we find that we have 
been fleeced royally, as we are charged as much for this modest 
peasant meal as though we had been dining in a good hotel in 
one of the larger cities. Remonstrating in Germany has no effect. 
The only thing one can do there is to " knock down and drag 
out" — and in that case you are up against the police authorities 
— and, when unfamiliar with the language, you have to take 
your medicine. So we pay our bill and quietly withdraw, trailed 
by an admiring throng who follow at a respectful distance to 
where our mail cart stands in state awaiting our return. The 
trip to Mutterstadt was so unique that we couldn't help but en- 
joy the novelty and newness of it all. 

From Mutterstadt we go on to the good-sized city of Speier. 
The name is spelled in several ways — ''Speyer" or "Speier." 
It is the capital of the Rhenish Palatinate and is situated at the 
confluence of the Speyerbach with the Rhine River. It is ten 
miles from Mannheim. It is a marvelously old city, over 2,000 
years old. It was a fortified outpost of the Romans and history 
tells us that, after Charlemagne, it became the residence of the 



40 



The Land Across the Sea 




The First Lutheran Church Built at Muttekstadt ix 1500, 
Now Used as a Police Station 



The Land Across the Sea 



41 




A Street Scene in Mutterstadt 



42 The Land Across the Sea 




A Street in the Quaint Village of Mutterstadt 



The Land Across the Sea 43 

Emperors of Germany and the seat of the Germanic Diet. Speier 
was at one time a very rich city. Its prosperity lasted to the sev- 
enteenth century, when its decline began. This was caused by a 
change in the channels of trade, and in 1689 the city was burned 
and blown up with gunpowder by the soldiery of Louis XIV. 
For many years it lay in ruins, but since it became a Bavarian 
possession (1816) the old buildings have been restored. At the 
Diet of Speier of 1529 the Reformation was condemned and the 
protestation then made by reformers gave rise to the name Prot- 
estant. 

Speier is the heart of the Bavarian hop district, where the 
most important branch of industry is the brewing of beer, for 
which there are over 7,000 establishments producing over 300 
millions of gallons a year. 

Now I am going to call your attention to the handsome rail- 
way station at Speier. You will notice it is large and quite an 
imposing edifice for a railway station in an only fair-sized city. 
The main floor is the station and offices, etc. The upper floor is 
a commodious living apartment for the station master. We have 
been told that this particular station master is highly educated, 
a great scholar, a successful author and an authority on historical 
research. Upon inquiry we find that he was an officer high in 
military service and that upon his retirement from active mili- 
tary life he was given this office of station master. We must 
bear in mind that everything in Germany belongs to the govern- 
ment — the railroads, street railways, etc. We are told, by one 
who is supposed to know, that when officers of the army have 
successfully served a certain period of active service and are 
finally retired that the government permits them to choose such 
positions as station master, etc. The position is one of honor. 
Our informant, a native of Germany, tells us that such positions 
as firemen and engineers on all German railroads are filled by 
ex-convicts. This is a matter of much surprise to us and upon 
inquiry we find that these positions are always filled by ex-con- 
victs, for none other than an ex-convict will occupy these posi- 
tions. I suppose that is because, ex-convicts having been ap- 
pointed to hold such positions, honest men fear being taken for 
ex-criminals if they occupy such a position. 



44 The Land Across the Sea 




Entrance to Cathedral at Speier 



The Land Across the Sea 45 

We find Speier very interesting, indeed. We have been rec- 
ommended to a certain hotel, where we go, and mine host treats 
us as though we are royalty traveling incognito. We try to ask 
about rates, etc., but are airily brushed aside and conducted to 
the best room in the hostelry. It is the quaintest kind of an old 
building— in fact, an old palace — and hundreds of years ago was 
for a time used as a Catholic convent ; later it became a palace for 
the ladies in waiting to the court. There is a great courtyard. 
When a carriage arrives mine host is standing at the door 
wreathed in polite smiles. We shudder inwardly, for we feel 
that for all this magnificence we will be fleeced royally. The 
rooms are immense ; the dining room is thronged with soldiers in 
their gaudy uniforms, drinking and smoking. We are served 
with a very good dinner, and, as the day has been a hard one, 
we ask to be shown to our room so that we may retire early and 
have a good night's rest. 

We find our apartment somberly splendid ; the only light be- 
ing two very tall candles which throw a sickly glimmer, outlin- 
ing great black shadows in the corners of the immense room with 
its great vaulted dome. The door is heavily padded with tufted 
leather and reminds one of a nicely padded private cell in an 
insane asylum. Two single beds, piled high with great feather 
pillow coverlets, occupy the place of honor. You get used to 
those big feather pillows instead of blankets or comforters after 
you have been in Germany for a while, but at first it is rather 
trying to sleep with about a ton of feathers from your throat to 
your heels. But, to go back to the room furnishings; a small 
table on either side of the beds holds one gigantic candle ; this is 
the only light and the feeble rays throw weird, depressing shad- 
ows in the room; a fine painting of the mad King Ludwig of 
Bavaria hangs right over one of the beds; the sorrowful eyes 
seem to question an alien presence and make a fit setting for a 
ghostly visitor. The room is terribly chill, for the nights are 
damp and cold in Germany. With our teeth chattering with 
cold, we throw the window sky high and crawl in hurriedly un- 
der the, for once, welcome protection of the featherbed cover and 
sleep the sleep of exhaustion. 



46 The Land Across the Sea 

The next morning we are up bright and early, for we want 
to see the places of interest. We are particularly anxious to 
see the great cathedral in which are entombed the bones of seven 
of Germany's Emperors. 

This cathedral is famous throughout Europe for its twin 
spires, which are of magnificent architecture. The accompany- 
ing photograph gives only the entrance, showing the people 
flocking to the edifice to celebrate a holy day. We will pass 
through the great doors with the throng and admire the splen- 
did paintings on the wall, but we are not permitted to visit the 
crypt today, as mass will be said from four in the morning until 
six at night. 

Speier is the chief city of the Palatinate and here are kept a 
great many valuable old records. There is a remarkable museum 
and a historical research society connected with it that is known 
throughout Europe. 

In speaking of the Palatinate it might be well to add a few 
words of explanation. Palatinate, or German Pfalz, is a division 
of the old German Empire, under the rule of counts Palatine 
(Pfalzgrafen), consisting of two separate portions distinguished 
as the Upper and Lower Palatinate. The Upper, or Bavarian 
Palatinate, was bounded by Bohemia and Bavaria, with Amber g 
as its capital. The Lower, or Rhenish Palatinate, lay on both 
sides of the Rhine, surrounded by Baden, Alsace, Lorraine, etc., 
its chief towns being Heidelberg and INIannheim. The counts 
Palatine were in possession of the Palatinate and the districts 
belonging to it as early as the eleventh century, and were long 
among the most powerful princes of the German Empire. At 
the Peace of Westphalia (1648) the Lower Palatinate was sep- 
arated from the Upper, and Bavaria came into possession of the 
latter, while the former now became a separate electorate of the 
Empire, and was thenceforth generally known as THE Palatin- 
ate. By the treaties of Paris (1814-15) the Palatinate was split up ; 
Bavaria received the largest part, and the remainder was divided 
between Hesse-Darmstadt and Prussia. The name Palatinate 
now belongs to the detached portion of Bavaria on the west of the 
Rhine, while the Upper Palatinate forms another portion of the 
monarchy. The city of Speier being the chief city of the Palat- 



The Land Across the Sea 47 

inate, therefore many valuable historical records pertaining to 
the early history of the Pfalz are kept at this place. 

Our day in Speier has been a delightful one spent in the 
archives of the city looking over old documents, records, etc., and 
an hour in the museum, which contains some very interesting 
exhibits. After dining at the hotel and calling for our bill, we 
are amazed at the charges made for our accommodations; we 
have been treated like princes and have been charged a very 
modest fee indeed. Another peculiarity of Germany is that ex- 
cellent service and accommodations will be charged at a fair 
rate, while inferior accommodations and atrocious service de- 
mand threefold. 

We leave Speier and, as business calls us to the historic little 
town of Bretten, we cross into the next province, which is Baden, 
and take a peep at Bretten, which is a small town of great an- 
tiquity. It is over a thousand years old and not far from Karls- 
ruhe. It is a typical German town, with nothing of interest to 
differentiate it from any other town of its size in the Empire. 
Our stay is brief; hotel accommodations are very poor and we 
are glad to shake the dust of Bretten from our boots and be on 
our way. "We now have a hurried trip to the province of Wur- 
temburg, as we have to search for some records in that locality. 
We find the towns and cities in this province almost a facsimile 
of what we have already seen, so w^e will pass over them rapidly. 
We take our first sleeping car or Pullman from Ludwigsburg 
back to Cologne, as it is a night's journey. The ' ' schlaf-wagon, ' ' 
as they are called, is quite a luxurious affair, very elaborately 
furnished in plush, etc. An odd feature ©f these German Pull- 
mans is that the berths run crosswise instead of lengthwise, as in 
our own sleeper. Therefore, one rides sideways, and, as the 
trains travel pretty rapidly, one is jostled considerably the whole 
night long. The foreign sleeper is not to be compared with our 
American Pullman, even though one has the advantage of a tiny 
box-like compartment which is private for the occupant. There 
are two berths in each compartment. A prominent English 
author came to America on a sight-seeing expedition a few 
months ago and was simply horrified when he found that our 
sleepers have no protection around the berths save the heavy 



48 



The Land Across the Sea 




A Street ^Jcexe ix Brettex 



The Land Across the Sea 49 

curtains; he considered this decidedly indelicate and boasted of 
the foreign sleeper with its private compartments. I suppose 
it is best that we don't all hanker for the same things, or the 
Pullman Company in America would be working overtime sup- 
plying continental Europe with our cars — and vice versa. Every 
man to his own tastes, as the old saying is, and I must admit that 
mine is in favor of the curtained sleeper, where I can ride with 
my face toward the engine, if I want to, instead of being churned 
from side to side, like abroad. 

Now a word about the manner of handling your baggage in 
Germany. You buy your railroad ticket and then you check 
your baggage, for which you receive no receipt or check; the 
luggage is handled alphabetically and when you arrive at your 
destination, if your name is Smith, you go to department "S" 
and there you are — there's your luggage awaiting your identifi- 
cation. I have puzzled over the situation and finally given it up 
in despair — I can't see why valuable luggage is not identified 
by impostors and hopelessly lost in this way. However, we don't 
lose ours — it bobs up serenely at every place. 

We have been somewhat unfortunate this year in our trip, as 
it is an unusually inclement summer and during our thirty days 
in Germany there have been twenty-nine days of rain, conse- 
quently we could not take pictures of as many places of interest 
as we would have liked to, as sunshine is absolutely essential in 
taking kodak pictures. As this has been a business trip, we are 
unable to follow the desires of self, and as our business has not 
taken us to the big cities of Berlin, Hamburg or Vienna, we do 
not have the opportunity of seeing them. Hamburg is in the 
extreme northern part of Germany and a long and expensive 
trip from the southern part. 

To review Germany as a nation from the standpoint of hav- 
ing traveled constantly for four weeks within its confines, and 
paying particular and careful attention to the customs of the 
country, I would say that I found the German a very suspicious 
and unsatisfactory type of character to do business with. No 
matter where you go, you are immediately recognized as an 
American, and, strange as it may seem, in absolute contradiction 
to the general opinion of the public at large, the Germans 



50 The Land Across the Sea 

heartily detest Americans, and they make no effort to disguise 
the fact unless the American happens to be one with unlimited 
wealth; in that case they grovel on the ground (metaphorically 
speaking), for the purely selfish reason of self-ingratiation with 
the rich traveler so that they will be royally paid for any service 
they may render. Without a liberal spending of money in Ger- 
many an American receives nothing but discourtesy and open 
derision. 

After having visited five countries of Europe and observing 
carefully the attitude of the various natives of each country, I 
am forced to believe that the American in Europe is preyed 
upon by all nationalities, financially, and is only suffered be- 
cause of his lavish generosity in scattering tips broadcast. Our 
American millionaires have ruined every European country by 
their foolish distribution of enormous tips, in consequence of 
which the ordinary traveler of modest means is treated with the 
utmost contempt because he does not let his money run through 
his fingers like sand into the hungry maw of European mendi- 
cants. 

It is all very well to talk of peace treaties between the various 
countries, but, in my own humble opinion, fear will have more 
effect than all the peace treaties in the world. The German on 
his own soil is the veriest bully imaginable. He is a born soldier. 
He glories in fighting, and, deep down in his heart, he hopes to 
see the day when he may have the opportunity to settle with the 
hated Americans. The only possible way to correctly under- 
stand the German's antipathy for an American is to mingle 
with the people, for the man of wealth who visits Germany and 
spends his money lavishly will be treated like a prince ; it is only 
the man of modest means who has the opportunity to see beneath 
the diplomatic surface and hear the scorn and ridicule of Amer- 
icans that realizes the true state of affairs. I have walked on 
public streets in Germany, with other members of our party, and 
heard the derisive sneer, ' ' Americans ! Ha ! " This becomes very 
offensive and makes an honest American's blood boil — but the 
insult has to be ignored and no punishment given, for an Amer- 
ican has little or no rights here. 



The Land Across the Sea 



51 



The reader can appreciate the writer's disappointment and 
alarm when Congress decided to build only one new warship 
instead of two — for have I not heard tlie rumble of a mighty 
storm which is bound to break before many years over our un- 
protected heads? 




52 The Land Across the Sea 




A Dutch Windmill Near Rotterdam 



The Land Across the Sea 53 



CHAPTER III. 

WE are now going to take a flying trip through the quaint 
little country of the Netherlands, more commonly known as 
Holland. Don 't you remember, when you were a child and went to 
school, of reading in the third or fourth reader (I forget which) 
about the funny little Hollanders, with their wooden shoes, who 
lived in the fascinating country of canals, dikes and windmills ? 
Wasn't your childish am«bition fired after reading that old poem 
depicting the little Hollandisch lad who spied a leak in the dike 
that protected the land from the Zuyder Zee, and knowing that 
the tiny rivulet of trickling water would soon grow into a raging 
torrent which would sweep away the entire dike and inundate 
the land, the brave little fellow thrust his small bare arm into the 
hole and courageously held it there through the long hours of 
the night until help arrived ? 

That story was indelibly stamped on my receptive child-mind. 
I was seized with a like ambition to perform some heroic service 
for humanity ; but as I was born and raised in the prosaic state 
of Iowa I found no opportunities (or leaks in dikes) by which I 
could become a heroine and thus squeeze into the hall of fame. 

We pass through a very picturesque and interesting country 
on our trip from Coin (Cologne) Germany, to Amsterdam, 
which is only a five-hour ride. It is surprising how quickly the 
topography of a country will change. The country now changes 
to lowlands. 

The word ''Netherlands" means "low countries." This 
strange little peninsular country, with its area of 12,648 square 
miles, is the most characteristic portion of the great plain of 
Northern and Western Europe. The Netherlands occupy the 
lowest part of this vast plain, some portions of it being nearly 
twenty feet below the surface of the sea. Nearly the entire tract 
is much too low for natural drainage. The coast line is very 
irregular and is marked by the great inlet, the Zuyder Zee. The 



54 The Land Across the Sea 

coast is so low that if it were not for great sea dikes large areas 
of the country would be covered with water and lost to the in- 
habitants. Dikes are also used in the interior to protect the land 
from the various lakes and rivers. In many cases dikes are built 
to reclaim swampy pieces of land by draining, the water being 
pumped up by windmills. 

The climate of the Netherlands is changeable and disagree- 
able. It is an agricultural and dairying country, and markedly 
different from the part of Germany that we have just left. There 
we saw no cattle or horses ; but here we see great numbers of fine 
herds placidly grazing on rich pasturage. The dairy produce 
is the chief industry of the Netherlands. Holland at one time 
of the world's history was the most important commercial coun- 
try in the world, and is even yet of great importance commer- 
cially. 

As we pass over this great tract of low land we see fertile 
fields or pastures on which graze countless herds of cattle raised 
for dairying. Great stretches of heath border the railroad tracks 
for miles. The heaths are covered with beautiful Scotland 
heather, rich with purple bloom, that stretches like a vast fairy- 
like carpet before our admiring vision. 

Just before we crossed the Holland border we were told to 
assemble at the next station, which we were fast approaching, to 
declare our baggage and have it examined by the customs. 
This is rather perfunctory, as but a brief glance is given the 
luggage contents. "We clamber hurriedly on the train once more, 
as we are anxious to be on our way again. We have been anx- 
iously watching through the car window to see the wonderful 
old windmills for which Holland in years gone by was famous. 
Shortly we spy one, to our great delight ; but we had expected 
to see many of tliem and are surprised to see only a few. 

We see several children, wearing wooden shoes, trudging 
through the pastures after their cattle. We begin to feel that 
we will see something really different now — something new to 
our American eyes. But we are doomed to disappointment, for 
Holland, like nearly all European countries, is so progresisve 
that she has torn away from her quaint old customs and costumes 
and is forging to the front too rapidly to be interesting. The 



The Land Across the Sea 




Peasants From Eural Districts, Holland 



56 



The Land Across the Sea 




Cart Drawn by Dogs Used in Rural Districts of Holland 



The Land Across the Sea 57 

quaint old costumes of years gone by are not to be seen, except 
in the interior, in the tiny villages where a few of the old cus- 
toms are still in vogue. 

We find the country intersected in every direction with myri- 
ads of canals. We wonder how the cattle, grazing so contentedly 
in the pastures, cross the many canals and find their way home ; 
they must wade, for we see but few bridges, and those are only 
narrow foot bridges. 

It is almost nightfall wiien w^e reach the great city of Am- 
sterdam, that buzzing beehive of industry. We leave the rail- 
way station — a fine, imposing structure — and find our way to the 
street, where we are immediately surrounded by several dozen 
cab-drivers, who earnestly beseech us, in several languages, to 
allow them to drive us to an hotel. Before a choice can be made 
one more enterprising than the rest grabs our hand baggage 
and rapidly makes way to his cab. We follow, fearing to lose our 
baggage, to the utter disgust and indignation of the rest of the 
cabbies, who blather to themselves and, w^ith sundry loud ex- 
clamations, threaten the successful cabman. The drive to the 
hotel w^e find very interesting. The little we see on this drive 
shows us that the city is extremely active and similar to anj^ of 
our large cities at home. 

Amsterdam is a very progressive city and has kept splendid 
pace with modern progress. In our ignorance of foreign lands 
we had expected to see the people dressed in native costume and 
wearing wooden shoes. But w^e find them garbed very similar to 
ourselves. Upon inquiry we are told that wooden shoes are only 
w^orn in rural districts by the peasants. 

Amsterdam, which is the capital of Holland, is one of the 
chief commercial cities of Europe. It is built on piles, owing to 
the lowness of its site, and is divided by canals into about ninety 
islands, which are connected by 300 bridges. There is a very 
fine harbor running along the w^hole north side of the city, sur- 
rounded by docks and basins. The trade is very great, owing to 
a great ship-canal, fifteen miles long, which connects the Y River 
directly with the North Sea. During the seventeenth century 
Amsterdam was the wealthiest city in the w^orld. Its forced alli- 
ance with France ruined its trade, but since 1813 its commerce 



58 



The Land Across the Sea 




Canal and Eailway Station, Amsterdam 



The Land Across the Sea 



59 




The Munt Tower, Amsterdam 



60 The Land Across the Sea 

has revived. One of the industries for which Amsterdam is 
world-famous is diamond cutting. 

The accompanying picture is that of the Queen's Palace. 
Architecturally it is of little importance on the exterior, and is 
so uninteresting that we pass it without a suspicion that the 
rather shabby looking building before us is a palace. It is in the 
heart of the city, and is so unlike what we had imagined a palace 
w^ould be that we couldn't believe our eyes and ears w^hen the 
driver pointed it out and told us what it was. The word ''pal- 
ace," somehow or other, conveys to the mind grandeur and the 
acme of luxury and opulence. It is simply a revelation to a 
plain, everyday American to pass through some of these foreign 
palaces and see how very commonplace and tawdry they really 
are. 

The palace at Amsterdam was originally built to be used as 
a city hall, and many millions of dollars were spent on the in- 
terior decorations. For the small fee of fifty cents you can go 
through the palace, in company with a guide, and it is a very 
unique trip. The guide, a portly Hollander, greatly impressed 
with his own importance, conducted our party, with others to 
the number of about twenty-five, through the palace. He is quite 
a linguist, speaking many languages, and made explanations in 
English, German and French for the benefit of our many-nation- 
ality party. 

I w^onder if Americans are possessed of more vivid imagina- 
tions than other nationalities, or whether it happened to be my 
own vivid imagination that was at fault ! And then, it couldn't 
be myself alone, for others in the party experienced the same 
disappointment that I did. Well, at any rate, we had all evi- 
dently pictured a palace as a magnificent structure, sumptuously 
furnished and embellished with the greatest treasures of art. 
Personally I had expected to catch my breath in admiration at 
the sight of exquisite draperies, fine silken rugs — in fact, all the 
wonders of tlie Orient blended together to create a perfect setting 
for the Queen of the nation. 

"We find many superb paintings by the various masters, worth 
gigantic sums. The marbles used for decorative purposes are of 
the costliest. There are numerous fine masterpieces of statuary. 



The Land Across the Sea 



61 



i 



J.J 




I II I II I III! 



Queen Wilhelmina's Palace, Amsterdam 



62 



The Land Across the Sea 




Damrak" — The Street, Amsterdam 



The Land Across the Sea 



63 




Landing the Morning Milk at Amsterdam 



64 



The Land Across the S'ej 




The Vegetable Market, Amsterdam 



The Land Across the Sea 65 

Our attention was attracted by several magnificent marble friezes 
of historical subjects. It is like traversing a beautiful picture 
gallery or museum of art ; but it takes the wildest stretch of the 
imagination to call this building a palace. The ball room is the 
one beautiful room in the entire palace. It has a handsome floor 
and many marvelous cut glass chandeliers. 

To enhance the beauty of the fine paintings, the statuary and 
the like, soft, rich draperies and beautiful rugs would transform 
the palace to a palace as gorgeous as any of the Arabian nights. 
But, hush ! Let me whisper it gently — the rugs and hangings are 
tawdry and shabby. The place is so bare of furniture as to make 
one shiver at the barrenness of it all. In some of the rooms the 
walls are hung in satin panels, but the satin is faded and hangs 
disconsolately, as if apologizing for its own shortcomings. The 
carpets and rugs are very faded and shabby, and were never, 
even in the beginning, what we would call real good quality. 

After it was all over and we had seen the palace we thanked 
our guide and left the place. Once more in the bright sunshine 
and pure crisp air, we breathed a sigh of relief — relief because 
of the fact that we are not of the blood that necessitates living 
in such a great barnlike structure in which one could not pos- 
sibly be happy or '^com'fy. " No gas or electric light, mind you; 
no steam heat or good old reliable furnace to keep the place 
warm. No attempt is made to heat the entire building. Only 
certain rooms are heated when occasion arises, for the Queen 
only spends one week in April of each year in her royal palace 
at Amsterdam. And we, none of us, blamed her for not wishing 
to remain there. A young girl in the party turned, with girlish 
abandon, and exclaimed, ''Well, I was never so surprised in all 
my life. So that's a palace! Well, thank heaven, I don't have 
to live in one of them. America is good enough for me." We 
smile benignly on her impetuosity, for she has bespoken our own 
thoughts. 

We have the pleasure of witnessing the Queen 's birthday fes- 
tivities, which are most interesting. The Hollanders are such a 
happy, jovial people that it is a most agreeable change from the 
frowns and black looks of the Germans. The Hollander looks at 
you curiously good-natured, with a happy smile on his face. If 



66 



The Land Across the Sea 




A Peasant Woman's Headdress, Holland 



Tpie Ijand Across the Sea 67 

you smile also he will bow pleasantly and go on about liis busi- 
ness. 

Queen Wilhehnina is greatly adored by her people. Her 
birthday fell on a Saturday this year and the celebration lasted 
all day. It Avas a great feast day. Games and performances of 
all kinds were held in the city park for the multitude and there 
were hundreds of small booths where edibles and baubles could 
be purchased. Toward the close of the day the crowd became 
/uore hilarious. By midnight they were walking arm in arm, 
hundreds of them, down the middle of the street, probably 
twenty-five abreast, like a regiment of soldiers, singing at the top 
of their voices. Street pianos played merrily the popular Amer- 
ican song, "Everybody's Doin' It," and the boys and girls 
waltzed happily in the public square to the music. Through it 
all everyone was intensely happy, good-humored and orderly. 

We find many things to interest us in Amsterdam, and we 
find our stay, indeed, too short to be able to see the many things 
of interest. We drive through the parks and view the many 
fine residences and public buildings. We have a glance at the 
famous old ]\Iunt Tower. Just a peep into the museum, wdth its 
splendid collection of antiquities. It is only a glance here and 
another one there, for we are only able to '^skim the surface" 
in our sight-seeing in Holland. 

A last place of interest visited was the home of Rembrandt, 
the most celebrated painter and etcher of the Dutch school. 
He was born in 1606 and died in 1669. The old house in which 
he lived for so many years is preserved as a sort of museum and 
contains many fine specimens of his art. 

Among the many delightful drives around the city is one of 
particular interest. It follows the wharves and furnishes an ex- 
cellent view of the many canals where hundreds of funny old 
canal houseboats ply their trade carrying the dairying products 
from the rural districts to the various cities and towns. Entire 
families live on these boats and they can be seen on deck most of 
the time, from the father down to the cunning little tots with 
their round Dutch faces and pigtails. 

It is with a feeling of regret that we leave Holland, for every 
moment spent within the confines of the country has been filled 



68 



The Land Across the Sea 




Life ox a Dutch Canal Boat, Amsterdam 



with pleasure. Everyone has treated the Americans with cour- 
tesy and respect and we would like to tarry, but as the lure of 
Paris is upon us we feel we cannot return to American shores 
without having seen Paris. We find that to go to Paris we must 
pass through the Kingdom of Belgium. We purchase our tickets 
as far as Brussels, so that we may have an opportunity of having 
a fleeting glance of Belgium's metropolis. 



The Land Across the Sea 69 



CHAPTER IV. 

13 ELGIUM occupies an area of 11,366 square miles and has the 
■^^ densest population of any European state (508 per square 
mile) and is composed of two distinct races — Flemish, who are 
of German, and Walloons, who are of French extraction. The 
Flemings speak a dialect of German and the Walloons a corrup- 
tion of French intermixed with phrases of Spanish and other 
languages. French, however, is the official and literary language 
of Belgium. 

Brussels is the capital of Belgium and is a miniature Chi- 
cago or New York, for it is hustling and bustling from daylight 
until dark and then half the night. It is a very gay city, and is 
divided into two sections, upper and lower sections. The upper 
section of the city is partly inside the boulevards and is the finest 
part of the city, including the King's Palace, which is a very 
handsome building; the Palace of the Chambers, the Palace of 
Justice (an enormous building of very imposing appearance) 
which is ranked as one of the finest in Europe, the Palace of Fine 
Arts, public library, museum, etc. There is a very fine park cov- 
ering an area of nearly twenty acres, around w^hich many of the 
public buildings are grouped. The upper town is of more mod- 
ern architecture in its buildings, while the lower town still re- 
tains an interesting antiquated appearance of the past. 

The Hotel de Ville, which was built in 1401-55, is a great 
Gothic structure with a spire 364 feet in height. The square in 
front of this building is perhaps the most picturesque of all pub- 
lic places in the city. The finest church is the beautiful Cathe- 
dral of Saint Gudule, dating from the thirteenth century. While 
it is a city of fine churches, the cathedral is superior to all others. 
It has a magnificent collection of sculpture and paintings. 

Brussels is an historic city, rich in the vicissitudes that go to 
make or unmake a great city. In 1044 it was walled by Baldric 
of Louvain ; in 1380 it was more completely fortified ; was twice 



70 



The Land Across the Sea 




A Street Scene in Brussels, Belgium 



burned and once ravaged by the plague during the fifteenth cen- 
tury. In 1695 it was bombarded and burned by the French ; was 
again captured and taken by the French in 1794 and retained 
until 1814, when it once more became an important city. From 
1815 to 1830 it was one of the capitals of the Kingdom of the 
Netherlands and in 1830 was the chief center of the revolt which 
resulted in the separation of Belgium from Holland. It is a 
wondrously rich city, with a large, enormously wealthy popula- 
tion. One of the industries for which Brussels is famous is the 
manufacture of Brussels laces. 



The Land Across the Sea 



71 



We would have liked very much to have stopped off at Ant- 
werp, but owing to lack of time we are obliged to go on at once 
if we wish to see the Mecca of all sight-seers — Paris. We leave 
Brussels with deep regret, for we have not been able to go to see 
the historical battlefield of Waterloo. Waterloo is a little village 
about ten miles southeast of Brussels. It is famous for the mem- 
orable battle which was fought here on June 18, 1815, and which 
resulted in the defeat of Napoleon by the Duke of Wellington 
and shattered the power of the despotic Frenchman. The British 
army, led by Wellington, dispersed the French army and seized 
their baggage, artillery, etc. The French loss in killed, wounded 
and prisoners amounted to between 40,000 and 50,000. The al- 
lied loss amounted to 23,000 killed and wounded. 

Everyone that goes to Belgium always makes it a point to 
visit the famous old battlefield, so that we feel that we have 
missed one of the places of interest that we should have seen. 




72 The Land Across the Sea 



CHAPTER V. 

IT is a five-hour journey from Brussels to Paris. We are 
still traveling second-class on the railroads, but we are told to 
change to first-class once we cross the French border, as the 
second-class accommodations are wretched in France. 

A fellow traveler has informed us that we will find France 
a slovenly, unsanitary, and in fact a dirty country where the 
majority of the people are not overly cleanly in their homes 
and about their cooking. The Germans and the Hollandisch are 
very clean and neat, as we learned by personal observation. 

The country is very interesting viewed from the car win- 
dows. We have one fault to find with foreign car windows 
and that is the narrowness of them. They are such a marked 
contrast to our own wide window^s at home, where it is a pleas- 
ure to watch the swiftly flying landscape. This hurried little 
trip through Germany, Holland, Belgium and now France, has 
made us all wish that we had spent a little time studying the 
topography of the land across the seas and polished up our his- 
tory and geography before we left home. It has been so long 
since our schooldays that we find historical places and dates 
have an unpleasant habit of tripping us when we start globe 
trotting. Our old reliable Baedeker, however, is a source of 
great comfort, for when we become too hopelessly entangled his- 
torically and geographically, we have but to turn to this guide 
book and soon be set right again. 

We had really forgotten, until we consulted our map, that 
France is a real maritime country, situated in the western part 
of Europe. On the north it is bounded by the Straits of 
Dover and the English Channel ; on the west by the Bay of Bis- 
cay; east and northeast by Italy, Switzerland, Germany and 
Belgium, while on the south it is bounded by Spain and the 
I\Iediterranean Sea. Its greatest length is 600 miles, running 
from north to south, while its greatest width is 547 miles. 



The Land Across the Sea 73 

Fortunately, we have a fellow passenger traveling in our 
compartment, a native born Frenchman speaking English very 
fluently, who gives us some very reliable information regarding 
the resources of his country. He informs us that about nine- 
tenths of the soil of the country is productive, and about one- 
half is under cultivation by the plow. The cultivated crops 
consist of wheat, rye, oats, barley, etc. The Government monopo- 
lizes the cultivation of tobacco. As good grass pasturage is not 
overly plentiful in France, the breeding of cattle is but indif- 
ferently practiced. However, there is a great demand for good 
horses for the army, and considerable pains is taken in the Gov- 
ernment stud to improve the breeds. Excellent horses are bred 
in the northern part of France. 

One of the most important industries, agriculturally, is the 
vcultivation of the grape vine. In this the French are unsur- 
passed, and the various wines which they produce, such as Cham- 
pagne, Burgundy, Bordeaux, etc., are known throughout the 
world and are in even greater demand in some countries than 
the Rhine and Moselle wines of Germany. 

France has been a republic since the overthrow of the second 
empire by a Paris mob on Sept. 4, 1870. Probably no country 
in the world's history has seen more bloodshed than France. 
What atrocious crimes were committed, in Liberty's name, dur- 
ing the bloody Reign of Terror, when the cobbled streets of 
Paris ran rivers of human blood ! Every reader of history has 
probably longed to visit the historical places of interest in and 
about Paris. 

We arrive in Paris at eleven-thirty at night. We have heard 
60 much of the gay, bizarre life of Paris that we expect to find 
the city flooded with light and the streets as densely crowded as 
in mid-day. We had arrived at Brussels at nearly midnight 
and found that capital in a perfect furore of festivities. The 
streets were thronged, the boulevard cafes were crowded and 
bands were playing in the streets despite the downfall of a 
heavy drizzling rain. The awnings dripped pools of water on the 
gay revellers, but it did not deter their pleasure. 

We leave the train at Paris and make our way outside the 
station. We find the street very quiet and with an air of deser- 



74 The Land Across the Sea 

tion that is surprising. We hail a passing cab, clamber in, and 
give the driver the name of the hotel where we wish to go. He 
cracks his whip and yells "Yip" at the decrepit old creature, 
supposedly a horse and we clatter noisily over the cobblestones. 
Now, the German cabby has a very similar way of starting his 
steed, but his mode of expression is quite different. The French- 
man shrills ''Yip" while the German chirrups in a low gut- 
teral "Brr-r-t." The word has the same effect, however, for 
the poor old beasts hobble along as quickly as possible. You 
never saw such miserable specimens of horses in your life as 
you find hitched to the foreign cabs. The taxicabs are driving 
the cabbies out of business ; I suppose that accounts for the use 
of such poor horseflesh. Speaking of horseflesh reminds me of 
something I wish to touch upon at this time before it slips my 
mind. In France the very poor people, and in fact, many who 
are not so poor, purchase and use horseflesh for food, as beef 
is very expensive. It is said that horseflesh is far superior to 
poor beef, and that the people acquire a liking for it. It is sold 
at markets where beef is also sold, but the law is that any shop 
dealing in horseflesh must notify the public to that effect by 
placing the figure of a horse's head over the door of the shop. 
This notifies the people that horseflesh is sold within. 

Now to return to the cabby who is driving us up and down 
the streets of Paris close on to midnight. He is shrewd enough 
to recognize that we are Americans and strangers, so he is driv- 
ing us thither and yon. After about twenty minutes' ride 
through deserted streets, where nothing is heard but the tinkle 
of the bells worn on the cab horses, we arrive at our hotel. We 
afterwards find that the cabby has deliberately driven us in a 
circle, you might say, in order to make us believe he was con- 
veying us some distance and thus increase his fare. In reality 
the hotel is but six blocks from the depot. 

Arriving at the hotel we find that it is as ''dead" as the 
proverbial door nail — and it is not quite midnight. And this is 
Paris — gay Paree ! We have selected a hotel in close proximity 
to the Louvois Square, most admirably situated, and highly 
recommended as being excellent and reasonable. We had been 
warned about the best hotels in Paris, that their prices were 



The Land Across the Sea 75 

so outrageously exorbitant that no one but a millionaire could 
aiford to put up at them. A rather good story is told about a 
well-known American financier wiio spent a few days in one of 
the famous Parisian hotels. Just before he left the place his 
bill was brought to him, at his request, while he was in com- 
pany with a party of friends. He glanced at the bill, which 
w^as grossly exorbitant. Turning to the manager, he said: 

''You must surely have made a mistake in this bill." 

"Oh, no, ]\ronsieur Morgan; there is no mistake, I assure 
you. We never make mistakes," smiled the manager rubbing 
his hands nervously. 

"But I insist," said Mr. Morgan, "you have made a mis- 
take this tim^e." 

The manager's face clouded angrily. Mr. Morgan smiled 
quizzically as he abstracted a roll of bills from his purse, add- 
ing: 

"You know — I COULD pay more." 

The point to this story is that the French hotelkeeper sizes up 
his patron. If he is an American, he is charged not only for 
his accommodations, but for the privilege of being allowed to 
stop at a Parisian hotel. If he looks as though he can stand it — 
oh, well, they add at least fifty per cent to the bill. 

Well, you see I have wandered away from the subject again. 
Let me see, where did I leave you ? Oh, yes. The Louvois Hotel, 
situated in Square Louvois. You see, I am giving you the name 
so that if you ever visit Paris you may look up this French 
hotel, as it is not only fairly reasonable, but the cuisine and 
service is excellent. 

As we are most dreadfully tired, we are glad to retire to 
rest and leave the exploration of Paris for the morrow. But 
we retire with a feeling of disappointment, for we have not 
found Paris what w^e expected. The gayest city in the world, 
where the people never sleep — where the streets are supposedly 
emblazoned with light, music, laughter and song! Why, New 
York and Chicago both have more lights in one of their city 
blocks than you will find in Paris in a mile. The gayety and 
laughter may be there, but it is not to be found on the streets. 



76 The Land Across the Sea 

While we are supposedly sleeping the sleep of the just a little 
history of Paris will not come amiss. 

Paris, as you know, is the capital of France. It lies in the 
Seine Valley. The river runs from east to west, enclosing two 
islands, upon which part of the city is built. This stream (Seine 
River) is navigable by small steamers. On both sides of the 
Seine extend embankments of solid masonry which protect the 
city from inundation and form fine promenades. The city is 
surrounded by a great wall or fortification, which measures 
over 22 miles. 

After a good night's rest we are ready to go sight-seeing. 
We rise and find that our breakfast is brought to our room with- 
out extra charge. The French breakfast is very similar to the 
German one — namely, rolls, coffee, tea or chocolate. 

We found it very difficult to become accustomed to the Ger- 
man breakfast. Americans, accustomed to a fairly substantial 
breakfast of fruit, cereal, eggs, toast and coffee, find it a great 
hardship to breakfast on dry rolls, without butter, coffee, strong 
as lye, without cream, thinned with a dubious skimmed milk. 
The German breakfasts the year round on rolls and coffee. He 
does not use butter, and it is never served in Germany unless 
ordered and paid extra for. The reason for this is that Ger- 
many is not a dairying country, and butter and cream cost 
exorbitantly. A few of the best and highest priced hotels, we 
are told, supply butter for their patrons, but very few of them. 

Water is never served at the table in Germany. Just think 
of it, dear reader, you who are accustomed to good drinking 
water and plenty of it, — never having a glass of good water to 
drink, being forced to drink beer or wine when you are thirsty, 
or to buy charged water, which is not palatable to many people, 
myself being one of them. AA^e spent 29 daj^s in Germany and I 
never had a glass of good drinking water while in the Empire. 
I was so desperate for a good, cold drink of water that I could 
hardl}^ refrain from rushing out in the public highway and 
shouting at the top of my voice : 

* * My kingdom for a drink of water. ' ' 

If you desire water at table and you ask the waiter to bring 
you some, he looks at you as though you were a mild kind of 



The Land Across the Sea 77 

lunatic. The German can be pardoned, to a certain extent for 
drinking little water as the ordinary water in Germany is sim- 
ply horrible. When you order water, therefore, you are obliged 
to drink a charged w^ater, for which, of course, you must pay. 
The German drinks his beer morning, noon and night. Even 
the wee mites of children drink their beer the same as the 
grown-ups. 

In France we find that the breakfasts improve to the extent 
of the serving of good cream for the coffee and excellent unsalted 
butter for the rolls. Sometimes they serve a little — oh, a very 
wee little bit of jam. French cooking, we learn by experience, 
is far superior to German. 

After we have seen a little of Paris and observed the ways 
of its people we learn that the French are as great wine drinkers 
as the Germans are beer drinkers. Outside of the restaurants 
are boulevard cafes, occupying the sidewalk space. These boule- 
vard cafes contain dozens of small tables where the people sit 
and drink, smoke and watch the passersby. Here is where the 
French Beau Brummel sips his absinthe and ogles every good 
looking woman or girl that passes by. Here also you will find 
the married couples and the little children, all seated at the cafe 
tables sipping their wine. I have seen tots four and five years 
of age sitting at these tables with their elders with their wine 
before them. Little children, that in America you would see at 
the soda water fountain or munching a bag of peanuts, are 
drinking wine like seasoned old topers. In Germany it is beer, 
in France it is wine. But the custom is the same — drink, 
drink — old and young. The young not in such quantities, 'tis 
true, but nevertheless they drink ; of that there is no question. 

A little quiet observation of the average German's daily life 
when we were touring the Fatherland gave us a better under- 
standing of the cause of their slow% heavy, plethoric natures. 
We believe it is partially caused by the amount of beer con- 
sumed each day by the ordinary German that makes this type 
sluggish and slow-witted. The German does not drink his beer 
at one draught, as does the American. He sips it slowly and 
enjoys every drop. He has it served with his breakfast, again 
at noon and again at night. After he has dined in the evening 



78 The Land Across the Sea 

he sits in one of the street cafes and drinks a cup of black 
coffee, perhaps; but he shortly returns to the beer again, until 
midnight. He retires for the night, rises in the morning and 
is perfectly satisfied with a breakfast of dry rolls, coffee, a slice 
of cold boiled ham and more beer. It is said that beer-drinking 
has been, and is today, the curse of Germany. It is considered 
a menace to the nation and is causing considerable perturbation 
among the thinkers who have the welfare of the nation at heart, 
and steps are being taken to try and curb the increase of beer 
drinking in the Empire. 

As I said before, in France the custom is the same, the only 
difference being that here the drink is wine and absinthe. But 
it is di'ank for breakfast, dinner and supper and then half the 
night. The result is a nation of physical weaklings. And the 
pity of it all is that the women and little children drink the 
same as the men. 

But to change the subject and take you all away from the 
breakfast table at the Louvois (pronounced Luvwa) we are going 
sight-seeing. We will take a taxi, of which there is great abun- 
dance. You never saw so many taxicabs in all your life as there 
are in Paris, and the beauty of it is that the charges are so 
small that one can ^ride all the time — it is as cheap to ride 
as walk. Just think ! you can ride almost anywhere, in the heart 
of Paris, as many as can pile in the taxi, for a franc or two. A 
franc is about 19 cents our money. Everybody rides — no one 
walks, because you take your life in your hands every time you 
cross a street in Paris. They say the people are killed and 
maimed like sheep on the Paris streets — run down by trams 
and taxis. So to be on the safe side, take a taxi. Now, don't 
forget to tip your driver, for he expects it, and if you should 
happen to forget it he is liable to throttle you. Unlike the 
German cabby, however, the Frenchman is satisfied with a small 
tip. A few centimes will satisfy him. But not so the German. 
T handed a waiter ten pfennigs (2i/2 cents in our money), which 
I had been told would be considered a liberal fee in Germafny, 
and the look he gave me froze my blood— I didn't get over the 
shock for a week — I actually tremble now when I think of it. 
A fellow traveler, pitying my distress, explained that the Ger- 



The Land Across the Sea 79 

man expects at least ten per cent of your bill for a tip — 
always. And imagine my handing him the equivalent of 2i/> 
cents. Can you not picture the scene? Consequently, if your 
bill amounts to $1.00 you give the waiter at least ten cents. 
We know, by experience, that that is about the amount one tips 
in America — yet we have been told that European tips, while 
numerous, were so small as to be a mere bagatelle. Before we 
get through with our trip, however, we find that the tipping is 
a good fifty per cent of our expenses. The worst of it is if one 
could tip the man or woman w^ho actually serves you — but you 
must commence with the boots (porter), and tip every servant 
in the house when you leave the hotel, and if you do not pay 
your tip willingly, of your own accord, in many cases in Ger- 
many ten per cent is added to your bill with the following 
notice : 

''So many patrons leaving the hotel neglect to pay for the 
service they receive that we are obliged to add ten per cent" 
(or whatever per cent it is) ''to your bill, which will be dis- 
tributed among the servants w^ho have had charge of your com- 
fort while here," etc. 

Did you ever hear of anything so preposterous in your life 
as being forced to pay the highest price for your hotel accom- 
modations and then servants' hire for the establishment, added 
to your bill? We found Germany the worst of all the five 
countries visited, as the German has little or no pride about a 
systematic hold-up of patrons. They are regular mendicants. 
AVithout tipping- in Germany you are treated worse than a con- 
vict. By tipping you are tolerated. Unless you shower gold 
you wall be frowned upon. The drawback to European travel 
is the systematic "hold-up" game that is practiced on travelers, 
particularly Americans. They believe that all Americans are rich 
beyond the dreams of Aladdin, and each and every one is of the 
firm conviction that "a fool and his money are soon parted" — 
and they do the "parting" most effectually. 

Well, I had you all safe in a taxicab and then I wandered 
away on the tipping evil. To again digress, we find our drive 
delightful. We are particularly interested in the houses of 
Paris, for most of them, are built of a peculiar white calcareous 



80 



The Land Across the Sea 




' The Garden or the Tuileries, ' ' Paris 



The Land Across the Sea 81 

(lime) stone. The height ranges from five to six stories and 
they are arranged in separate tenements. The population of 
Paris is greatly congested in these tenement districts. An unbe- 
lievable number of people living in one block in some portions 
of the city. 

The streets are very narrow and irregular in the older part 
of the city and not overly clean. In the newer part, however, 
the avenues and boulevards are broad and well paved. There 
are many fine boulevards, but one in particular, known as The 
Boulevard, extends in an irregular arc, on the north side of 
the Seine, from the Place de la Bastile on the east to the Place 
de la Madeline on the west. Here our attention is attracted to 
two of the most magnificent arches — the triumphal arches of 
Porte St. Denis and Porte St. Martin. They are truly superb. 

There are many ways of seeing Paris. The best way, in our 
humble estimation, is to take the Cook tours. Yes, I know 
what you are saying, — how everyone ridicules the Cook tourist. 
I was actually afraid to ride in a Cook sightseeing machine for 
fear people would think I was an ignorant specie of American. 
How much fun has been poked at the Cook tourist. There may 
be truth in the fun, but I want to say this, we are going to 
take Cook's auto tours to several places of interest and I know 
we are going to enjoy them. But first we will finish our taxi 
drive. 

We drive through some of the most notable squares, the 
Place de la Concorde, one of the largest and most beautiful in 
Europe. We are much impressed with the exquisite beauty 
of the gardens of the Tuileries, which is adorned with many fine 
statues and fountains. The Tuileries was once the residence 
or royal palace of the French monarchs and is situated on the 
right bank of the Seine river. Catherine de IMedici began the 
building in 1564. Henry IV added considerably to it and 
founded the gallery (1600). Louis XIV enlarged the buildings 
in 1654 and completed the gallery. During the revolution 
(1830) it was sacked. It was restored to all its former grandeur 
by Louis Philippe, but in 1848 it was again pillaged. It then 
became a hospital, then a picture gallery, and finally the home 
of Louis Napoleon in 1851. May 23, 1871, it was almost totally 



82 The Land Across the Sea 

destroyed by fire and the remaining portions were removed 
in 1883. 

Our drive takes us through the finest park in Paris, the Bois 
de Boulogne, which covers an area of over 2,000 acres and 
comprises the race courses of Longchamps and Auteuil. 

One of the places of the greatest historical interest, which 
we have been most anxious to see is the Place de la Bastile. 
The Bastile was a prison and a citadel built in 1370 by 
Charles Y. It was used chiefly for the confinement of persons 
of rank who became victims to the intriques of the court or the 
caprice of the government. The opening Avedge of the Revolu- 
tion was made when the hated Bastile was captured by a 
Parisian mob July 14, 1789. After a fierce struggle the Bastile 
was seized by the infuriated populace ; the Governor, Delaunay, 
who had resisted the attack, was seized, but on the way to the 
townhall he was torn from his captors and put to death. The 
next day the destruction of the Bastile commenced. A great 
granite column marks the spot where the Bastile once tortured 
its royal victims. 

Paris is a city of fine churches. It would take page upon 
page to adequately picture the many magnificent churches and 
buildings of historical interest in Paris. As our time in the 
French metropolis is limited we are obliged to see only the most 
(to us) alluring places of interest. The one place of all others 
that every tourist visits in Paris is the tomb of the great Napo- 
leon. The accompanying picture gives a slight idea of it, 
but can in no way reproduce the magnificent grandeur of this 
beautiful place. It is a most impressive piece of art in the hotel 
des Invalides. The remains of Turenne and several other great 
French commanders are also deposited here. 

Napoleon's tomb is a magnificent and awe-inspiring spec- 
tacle. It is guarded day and night by two of the oldest French 
soldiers living. One is well along in his eighties and the otlier 
in his nineties. We all gather around the great bronze doors 
that guard the tomb, where stands the proud old guard, and 
many shake hands with him. He is delighted with the attention 
he receives and we are all touched. 



The Land Across the Sea 



83 




Dome of the Invalides and Tomb of Napoleon 
Stairs at Top of Picture Lead to Le Sanctuaire, Paris 



84 



The Land Across the Sea 



The tomb is not the only remarkable object of interest to be 
seen in this building. The most exquisitely beautiful sanctuary 
called "Le Sanctuaire de la Chappelle St. Louis" attracts our 
attention. I wish I could describe it as it is indelibly photo- 
graphed upon my brain. A wonderful alcove or recess in the 
shape of an arc — the entire arc constructed of amber-colored 
glass of such marvelous concentration of light that the entire 
recess is bathed in a golden halo so spiritual and glorious that 
even in the darkest hour of the night that wondrous golden 
light streams from the amber-colored glass and pierces the 
gloom. Neither pen nor tongue can adequately describe the 
mysterious reverential awe, the nearness to the divine presence, 
actually unseen but physically felt. We cease speaking as that 
wondrous golden light, so full of love, promise and hope eternal, 
quickens our pulses with its silent message and sends us away 
better men and women for having spent a moment's silent de- 
votion at this holy shrine. 

The secret process of manufacture of this wonderful amber 
glass w^as lost to the world by the death of the inventor. I 
regret to say that the name of the inventor has slipped my 
mind, and as I neglected to make a note of it I am unable to 
give it. This window or glass recess is the only one of its kind 
in the whole world. Other similar processes have been invented 
by which glass, of supposedly the same peculiar concentration 
of light, was manufactured, but upon trial it always failed to 
concentrate and hold the light after dark. 




The Land Across the Sea 



85 




Eiffel Tower, Paris 



86 The Land Across the Sea 



CHAPTER VI. 

FOR the benefit of the ladies in our party we are going shop- 
ping this morning. Was ever the woman born who has not 
longed for the opportunity to shop in Paris, the leader of the 
world's fashions'? We have heard so many conflicting stories 
regarding Parisian shops that we are anxious to see for our- 
selves what is what. We take a taxi early in the morning and 
drive to the Galleries Lafayette. We have been told that while 
this is not one of the best shops, it is the most reasonable store 
in Paris. It is but a moment's ride, and as we draw up to the 
curb we catch our first glimpse of a Paris department store. 
We can scarcely believe our eyes, — but yes, it is actually a fact, 
the pavement in front of the place is crowded with great tables 
heaped with the greatest conglomeration of dry goods, notions, 
rugs, cutlery, hardware — any old thing. It looks more like an 
old clothes shop than it does an up-to-date dry goods establish- 
ment. We elbow our way through the crowd, for even at nine- 
thirty in the morning the place is jammed with women. Once 
inside we ask for an interpreter. A dapper little gentleman 
takes us in tow and we tell him we wish to see the ladies' 
gowns and suits. We spend a busy morning looking over the 
different styles of frocks, dinner gowns, etc. We have been 
told that shopping in Paris is perplexing as the goods are 
marked in francs instead of dollars. 

"Just multiply the number of francs by two and you will 
have the amount in American money," we are advised. 

Let us try it. Here we see a suit marked "200 francs." 
Before we are able to decide whether it is a bargain or not we 
must reduce the francs into good old American dollars by mul- 
tiplying the 200 francs by two, giving us the American equiva- 
lent of forty dollars. Of course it is not quite forty dollars, 
as a franc is a fraction over nineteen cents; but that is near 



^^ 



The Land Across the Sea 87 

enough. We decide that the suit is not a bargain, for, upon 
examination, we find it of poor quality and workmanship. 

^/ Thinking possibly that silk hose might be cheaper here than 
1 at home we inquire regarding them, and we are surprised 
to find the ordinary cheaper grade of hose that can be bought 
at home for $1.00 would cost $2.00 per pair in Paris, and are 
not nearly as good in quality. Silk is very expensive. Woolens, 
cottons and linens are cheaper. 

'. We found that it was impossible to shop advantageously in 

^^^ermany, so we bought as little as we possibly could. When an 
American enters an European shop, particularly where the shop 
window bears a sign ''English spoken," the prices soar imme- 
diately. The houses are not one-price houses; they fluctuate 
according to the appearance of the prospective purchaser. We 

*- were told that we could buy the most exquisite linens in Ger- 
many for a mere song. I searched diligently for them, but 
found that I could get identically the same linens at ^Marshall 
Field's, in Chicago, for at least one-third to one-half less. Con- 
sequently we did little shopping in Germany. In Holland it 
was the same. In Belgium good bargains could be had in 
Brussels laces, but that was about all. So we saved our pennies 
and looked forward to a riotous shopping tour in Paris. Here 
again we are doomed to disappointment. Everywhere it is the 
same, — prices soar the minute an American enters the store. 
We have been warned to never pay the price marked^ or asked 
for an article, but to say, ''Too much," and make a bluff at 
leaving the shop and that invariably the price will be reduced 
rather than a sale lost. This is our first trip abroad, and it 
would never do to return home without some Parisian clothes, 
so we spend days searching for something suitable to both purse 
and style. 

We are much amused at the ludicrous notions the French 
tradesmen have of American shops. They imagine that we are 
at least two years behind in our styles. What is not sold in 
Paris — the left-overs> — are supposed to be good enough for 
America. 

"Madam won't care for this advanced style, it will be too 
new for America," we are told b}^ the attentive salesman. 




88 The Land Across the Sea 

No, Madam doesn't care particularly for the style, for it is 
the harem skirt which was introduced in America shortly after 
its advent in Paris — worn for a very short time and discarded 
ages ago. 

"I suppose that American styles are vastly different from 
those you find here," chatters our salesman ingratiatingly. 

"Not at all," we reply. "Our great shops, both in Chicago 
and New York, have excellent foreign buyers, and our styles 
and fashions in America, if anything, are much more distinctive 
and attractive than what you have here." 

"Oui," smiles the salesman disbelievingly with uplifted 
eyebrows. 

Of course he doesn't believe us, for he thinks, as do all of 
the rest of these manikins, that America is a regular old junk 
heap, where the women (save those rich enough to go to Paris 
for their wardrobes) are frowsy and unkempt and don't know 
how to wear good clothes. How surprised this class of Par- 
isians would be if they could see how far superior the American 
shops, such as Wanamaker's in Philadelphia and New York, 
and Marshall Field's in Chicago, are to their dowdy little one- 
horse buildings in Paris. 

We leave the Galleries Lafayette and drive to the Louvre, 
one of the fashionable shops, and from there to the Bon Marche. 
The Bon Marche is a store, similar in many respects to the 
Galleries. Here we really do pick up a good bargain in the 
way of men's gloves. They are a very superior quality of both 
glace and suede kid gloves for about 35 cents a pair in our 
money. These gloves would cost at the very lowest calculation, 
at home, from $1.50 to $2.00 per pair. We find in the gown 
department a very pretty little velvet house gown or wrapper, 
made in Empire style, for the modest sum of $7.50, which is also 
an excellent bargain. 

The windows of the Louvre are large plate glass ones, similar 
to our own shop windows at home, and are more attractively 
decorated than any of the other stores. The Galleries Lafay- 
ette pay little attention to window decorations, as the pavement 
counters bar the windows. The windows of both the Galleries 



The Land Across the Sea 89 

and the Bon IMarche are crowded with a conglomeration of 
goods, more on the country store order. 

The Louvre has no pavement counters, and the window 
exhibit is fairly good. Another fashionable shop is Printemps, 
which is really considered the best in Paris and much more 
expensive. We are greatly disappointed in the French shops. 
We are accustomed to having our comfort looked after in the 
big stores at home, but no attention whatever is paid to the 
comfort of patrons in Paris. There the only desire of the shop- 
keeper is to sell goods, and he makes no attempt to cater to the 
comfort of his customers. The French shops are a snare and 
a delusion, and are disappointing in the extreme. They are 
a delight to the woman with enormous wealth, for there are 
many beautiful baubles to be purchased at good prices. A 
woman must be well balanced and a good, strong will to not 
succumb to the temptations of beautiful fabrics and the thou- 
sand and one things that go to make up a well-dressed woman's 
wardrobe. There are many beautiful things, but the prices are 
exorbitantly high in almost every case. While the shops are 
filled with splendid materials, the Parisian shop-keeper doesn't 
know the first thing about attractively displaying his wares. 
Counters of the most magnificent silks and velvets jostle coun- 
ters liable to contain any kind of junk ; no harmony of fabric or 
colors, just a huge conglomeration of the whole. The clerks 
are attentive, and the one trouble is that there are too many 
clerks in each shop. When a customer enters a store half a 
dozen clerks rush up and try to wait on you. In London it is 
different; but we will speak of that later on. 

It has been said that you are forced to buy in the Parisian 
shops whether you wish to do so or not; but on the contrary, 
we have no difficulty along that line. We are shown the goods 
we ask to see, politely waited upon, and, if we say we do not 
wish them, the clerk apologizes for not having anything we 
care to purchase, and w^e pass on. 

At the Louvre we find a pretty good suit for 250 francs, and 
another one for 200 francs. Although we can do nearly as 
well at home, we purchase several suits just to have something 
to show at home that came from Paris. We find some very 



90 The Land Across the Sea 

pretty and. attractive hats, and we purchase se^^ral. The 
models are really the only new thing we have seen so far. 
The suits and gowns are, many of them, so distinctively new 
and Parisian that none but the demi mondain would care to 
wear them. 

We find many little novelty shops that have the quaintest, 
oddest little novelties that are entirely new to us. We pick up 
many dainty little odds and ends as souvenirs for home friends. 
A tiny little glove shop attracts our attention and we purchase 
some good gloves for less than fifty cents a pair. 

We are simply bewildered by the magnificent window dis- 
plays of fine jewels on the Kue de la Paix. The most marvelous 
diamonds and all varieties of precious stones. Diamonds and 
pearls worth a king's ransom are displayed in the jewelry 
windows. I never saw so many jewelry shops in my life — and 
such jewels ! Nothing like them under the sun. 

Before we close our shopping expedition we must take a look 
at furs, for we have been told they are to be had at extraordi- 
narily low prices. We visit a reliable furrier and find this to 
be true. We select a handsome caracal stole or scarf for the 
neck which nearly touches the floor in length, lined with heavy 
satin of excellent quality, for the remarkable price of 48 francs, 
or a little less than $10. The same scarf at home could not be 
purchased under from $45 to $65. The assortment of furs to be 
found in the best fur stores in Paris is unexceptionally fine at 
prices ranging all the way from one-third to one-half less than 
w^e would pay for the same goods at home. The duty on im- 
ported furs is excessively high, so that one has not much ad- 
vantage purchasing even at the extremely low price, for by the 
time the duty is added the purchase costs about the same as it 
would if bought at home. Superb skins of all textures and 
values are exhibited in the most beautiful combinations. 

We have been very careful to keep all of our receipts for 
goods purchased so that if we are called upon to pay duty we 
will have the exact price paid for the articles, as it is said the 
customs office does not always affix the real purchasable value 
on goods, and one thereby loses the advantage gained by buying 
an article at a bargainable price. 



The Land Across the Sea 91 

We have noticed that about three out of every five French 
women we meet on the street are in mourning. The French 
are very fond of mourning and wear it under the slightest 
provocation. They go into as deep mourning for a cousin as a 
parent or child, and it is worn two to five years. 

We shopped all day Saturday, promising ourselves an auto 
trip to either Versailles or Fontainbleau on Sunday. At 
luncheon we discuss which place it is to be, and finally the 
Fontainbleau contingent of our party win the argument that 
a 40-mile auto ride through the country district of France will 
be unsurpassable. On our way hotelward from the shopping 
district we stop at Cooks' and purchase our tickets, which cost 
$5.00 the round trip, including luncheon. We are lucky, for 
we have gotten outside seats on the sight-seeing auto, which 
holds 16 people. 

Bright and early Sunday morning finds us in front of Cooks' 
in readiness to depart. The start is made promptly at ten 
o'clock. The morning is rather chill and we are wrapped up 
good and warm with plenty of heavy rugs around us. On the 
stroke of the hour we are off on the most delightful automobile 
trip it has ever been our good fortune to experience. Talk 
about ideal automobile roads; you never traversed such delight- 
fully smooth roads in your life. After an hour's riding we 
leave the city behind us and are spinning over the country road 
at a 40-mile-an-hour clip. The road is bordered on each side by 
big shade trees and the entire landscape is delightfully restful 
and interesting. Just at the edge of town we pass an aeroplane 
school where ambitious people are taught to be aeronauts. We 
see a machine just rising from the ground. We watch it go 
through a few paces. But our machine is traveling along pretty 
rapidl}^ and as the aeroplane is merely circling over the grounds 
we soon lose sight of it. We are bowling along, drinking in 
the deliciously crisp morning air, when we hear a buzz, which 
grows louder, and someone spies a big aeroplane coming from 
the south ; we have a splendid view of it, and watch its maneu- 
vers until it is lost to sight. 

We see three flying machines before we reach Fontainbleau. 
Aeroplanes are becoming quite fashionable and smart in 



92 



The Land Across the Sea 



1\~-r^4l 





Flying Machine," Paris 



The Land Across the Sea 93 

Europe. The sons of wealth in Brussels all have aeroplanes, as 
well as several kinds of motor cars. It is the same way in Paris. 
To have a complete menage, an aeroplane must be added to the 
equipment. 

Every moment of the drive to Fontainbleau is enjoyable. 
The tow^n of Fontainbleau is in the midst of a forest of the 
same name. It is about two miles from the Seine river and 37 
miles southeast of Paris. The town owes its origin chiefly to the 
palace, and is a quiet, pretty place wdth good, clean streets. 

The palace of Fontainbleau occupied the site of a fortified 
chateau founded b}^ Louis VII in 1162. This w^as converted into 
a palace by Francis I. Henry IV added considerable splendor 
to the place, as did in time Napoleon I, Philippe, and Napoleon 
III. The castle or palace is situated in a park that is laid out 
in a vast garden ; it is adorned with beautiful statues, temples, 
fountains, lakes, w^aterfalls, and wonderfully rustic promenades. 
The forest is about 50 miles in circumference and covers an 
area of 42,500 acres, and abounds w^ith game. 

Just before w^e reach Fontainbleau, and after a drive 
through the forest of the most magnificent old beech trees, w^iose 
tops seemed to pierce the sky, we arrive at an hotel where w^e are 
told to alight and have our luncheon. We find that our tickets 
include the luncheon. The hotel is a handsome modern struc- 
ture, elegantly equipped. The luncheon is most enjoyable, both 
cuisine and service being excellent. 

A few moments later and we are again in our seats driving 
rapidly to the palace. It is quite an imposing building on the 
exterior, and in a fairly good state of preservation. We see 
many needed repairs that w^ould add to the attractiveness of the 
place, but, considering its age and its vicissitudes, it is remark- 
ably well kept. We enter the building and are asked to inscribe 
our names on the visitors' book, which w^e do, and we then follow 
a most dapper little French guide, who conducts us through the 
palace. He chatters volubly in French, and occasionally he 
condescends to explain in English; he speaks English well, but 
evidently does not think the American contingent as important 
as the French members of the party. Fortunately most of our 



94 The Land Across the Sea 

party speak English and they, good naturedly, translate what 
he says to us, who are not familiar with French. 

The palace is an endless chain of rooms entering one into 
another. And let me tell you a secret — they are not nice rooms, 
either, many of them. There is not sufficient light, and lack 
of windows creates a somberness which detracts from them. 
Several centuries ago the palace must have been imposingly 
splendid, but now the tapestries, rugs, in fact all the furnishings 
are tarnished and shabby. In some of the rooms the floors are 
exquisitely inlaid, the walls and ceilings paneled; in other 
rooms the woodwork would disgrace an ordinary American 
kitchen. 

There are hundreds of articles of great historical interest. 
It is in reality a splendid museum of antiquity. The boudoirs, 
once occupied by famous French queens and court favorites, 
are tiny, dark, box-like apartments, with the most uncomfort- 
able looking beds imaginable. After viewing these rooms, which 
were considered a century or two ago the acme of luxury and 
opulence, we cannot help contrast them with the improvements 
of today. 

There is a wonderful old chapel that holds us spellbound as 
we enter the gallery and sit on the hard velvet stools, on which 
royalty once sat and prayed in privacy while the rabble sat 
below and cast '' sheep 's-eyes" at the quality. 

But we soon tire of the building and we hasten out of doors 
to see the famous carp pond of which we have read so often, 
where for several hundred years visitors have fed the gigantic 
carp, of unbelievable age, that boldly swim to the surface of 
the water and disport themselves for the amusement of the 
crowd which comes from all over the world to feed them. 
Small baskets of bread are sold visitors, and it is one of 
the attractions of Fontainbleau to feed the carp. They are 
said to be, many of them, three and four hundred years old. 
The lake is picturesque and the grounds are superb. Such 
trees! I never saw any to compare with them outside of the 
famous big trees of California — the Sequoia Sempervirens, which 
is the largest grove in the world of this species. 



The Land Across the Sea 95 

We spend about an hour at Fontainbleau and then return 
to our machine and are soon homeward bound, arriving in Paris 
just at sundown, after the most enjoyable day we have had on 
our journey. A day that we will treasure for years in our 
memory. 

We did not have time to go to Versailles, one of the historic- 
ally famous places of interest, about 11 miles southwest of Paris. 
It is said to be one of the handsomest towns in Europe. It was 
built by different sovereigns of France, particularly Louis XIV, 
who made it the seat of his court and erected a splendid palace. 
Louis Philippe converted the palace into a national museum, 
and it contains an immense collection of statues, wonderful 
paintings and works of art. 

We have several Cook's tour rides about Paris and see 
the many places of historic interest. Our time in the French 
capital is only seven days, so w^e are not able to see but a very 
small portion of the many interesting things to be seen. We 
must be content, however, for half a loaf is better than no 
bread. 

On one of our drives we visit the Eiffel Tower, one of Paris' 
curious sights of interest. It is a gigantic structure built by 
Gustave Eiffel, an engineer who was born in 1832 at Dijon, 
France. The tower w^as built for the Paris exposition of 1889, 
and made Mr. Eiffel's name famous throughout the civilized 
world. This tower is 984 feet high, and at an elevation of 896 
feet it is 33 feet in diameter. The weight of the iron used in its 
construction is 7,300 tons. On the top of the structure is a great 
lantern, to which a system of elevators is run. 

From Paris we have decided to go to England, just to have 
a peep at the largest city in the world ; we may never have the 
opportunity of visiting Europe again, so we feel we must not 
lose the chance of seeing the great English metropolis. The 
English Channel is an arm of the sea separating England from 
France, extending on the English side from Dover to Land's 
End and on the French side from Calais to the Island of 
Ushant. The popular way of crossing the channel is to take 
steamer from Calais to Dover. The channel is choppy and 



96 The Land Across the Sea 

rough and every one, even seasoned old tourists, dread the 
crossing. Instead of crossing from Calais, we go to Boulogne. 

Boulogne is a fortified seaport of France, situated at the 
mouth of the Lianne. Steamboats run daily between this place 
and England, crossing over in two or three hours. Napoleon 
Bonaparte, after deepening and fortifying the harbor, encamped 
180,000 men here wath the intention of invading Britain at a 
favorable moment; but upon the outbreak of hostilities with 
Austria in 1805, they were called to other places and the plan 
was abandoned. 

We take the boat at around eleven o'clock. We have great 
difficulty getting a steamer .chair, for they are sold ; there is 
no place else to sit other than the steamer chairs unless we go in- 
side where the people are laid out by the dozens waiting for the 
ship to start, which is a signal for them to become sea-sick. I am 
a great believer in autosuggestion. It exasperated me to see 
dozens of men and women lying stretched full length on couches, 
flat on their backs, waiting for the ship's motion, their signal 
for sea-sickness. Closed up in the close cabins they can't help 
being sick; they suggest sickness to themselves, and as a result 
of course they are sick — ^they would be grossly disappointed if 
they were not. It is such a beautiful day there is no sense in 
any one being sick. We finally bribe a young chap to sell us his 
steamer chair and Ave take turns sitting down and tramping the 
deck. The ship rolls occasionally, but we drink in the splendid 
salt air, clinch our teeth and will that we will not get sick, 
and the result is that none of us are the least sick. So much 
for the power of will over matter. We arrive at Folkestone as 
chipper as can be. 

Folkestone is a seaport in the County of Kent, England. It 
is five or six miles from Dover and is a terminus of the South- 
eastern Railway and a chief station for steamers to and from 
Boulogne. It is a very popular wateringplace, and has a large 
shipping trade. 

Here we have our baggage examined; the examination is 
again rather perfunctory and we are asked if we have any 
alcohol, and we say no. We board the train; an Englishman 



The Land Across the Sea 97 

and his mother occupy the same compartment. She is carrying 
a bottle of eau de cologne ; she smiles : 

' ' I had to declare my cologne. ' ' 

''Why?" we question curiously. 

''It contains alcohol," she explains. "You know, if you 
should be caught with anything containing alcohol " 

We begin to tremble in our shoes while the cold chills cavort 
playfully up and down our spinal column, for bless you, we 
have just oodles of eau de cologne in our steamer trunk and never 
thought of such a thing as declaring it because it contained 
alcohol. Also matches — a fine of, I believe, it is a pound ($5.00 
in our money) for every match brought into the country. It is 
a Government monopoly, I guess. 

The trip by train from Folkestone to London is delightful; 
the scenery of old England is beautifully pastoral ; the greenest 
of downs imaginable, where great flocks of sheep graze placidly. 
A sense of great peace over all that is restful and cheering. A 
little history of England won't come amiss at this time. By 
consulting our map we find that England, including Wales, is in 
the southern and larger portion of the island of Great Britain. 
It has a coast line of over 2,500 miles. Its most important cities 
are London, Liverpool, Manchester, Salford, Birmingham, Leeds, 
Sheffield, Bristol, Nottingham, Bradford and Hull. 

London is the capital of the British Empire. It is the largest 
city in the world and is situated in the southeast part of England, 
on either side of the river Thames (pronounced "Tems"). It 
stretches about 14 miles east and west and about 10 miles north 
and south. It has a population of over seven and one-half 
million. 

Among the principal streets are Piccadilly, Pall Mall, the 
Strand, Fleet and Oxford streets. The fine shops are located on 
Regent street, the handsomest street in the city. The Thames 
embankment on the north, or IMiddlesex side, known as Victoria 
embankment, forms a splendid thoroughfare and is the site of 
important buildings, fine grounds and statues. The principal 
parks are Hyde Park and Regent Park. In Regent Park, sit- 
uated in the northwest of London, north of Hyde Park, are the 
Zoological Gardens, which has the largest collection of animals 



98 The Land Across the Sea 

in the world. The British Museum contains the great national 
collection, and is in the heart of the city, you might say. 

Historically London is intensely interesting, for it has a 
remarkable history. In the reign of Claudius (41-54 A. D.) the 
southern part of Britain was made a Roman province, and 
London became a Roman station. About the year 306, in the 
time of Constantine, the Romans fortified and walled the city, 
and it became an important commercial center. In the fifteenth 
century the plague of sweating sickness raged several years. 
This was followed (in 1664) by the great plague which raged 
furiously for nearly two years and killed 69,000 persons. In 
1666 the great fire occurred and destroyed 14,000 houses, 90 
churclies and many public buildings. The population and trade 
from that time on increased rapidly. In 1759 the British 
Museum, founded on Sir Hans Sloane's collections purchased by 
the Government, was opened. 

Not long after this the streets began to be named and street 
numbers appeared on the houses. In 1781 the Gordon riots took 
place and great havoc was wrought by an infuriated mob who 
seized and held London for two days. The old houses of parlia- 
ment were burned down in 1834. The new buildings were com- 
menced in 1840. The great international exhibition was held in 
Hyde Park in 1851, and many similar exhibitions followed. 
London has improved rapidly and kept pace with modern prog- 
ress from that time on. One of the notable improvements was 
the building of the Thames Embankment and the Holborn 
Viaduct. 

"We find London a surprise instead of a disappointment. You 
cannot imagine how delightful it is to get into a country where 
the people speak our own language. After several months of 
foreign languages one fairly hungers to hear good old United 
States, and when you meet a man or woman with "English 
spoken" plainly discernible on the countenance one feels like 
falling on their neck for pure joy of speaking to a fellow crea- 
ture in our own tongue. 

"We have heard, of course, all our lives that London was a 
city of fogs. Fortunately for us we arrive there on the brightest 
day imaginable, and during our stay of eight days Ave have 



The Land Across the Sea 99 

perfect weather, witliout the slightest hint of fog. We are duly 
grateful for this, because if the fog had settled on the city, we 
are told, sight-seeing would end and we would be glad to hover 
over a cozy grate-fire and stay indoors in the yellow twilight 
which prevails. We find the English people very courteous and 
obliging, although rather hard to get acquainted with. The 
hotels are excellent and compare favorably with our own at 
home. To our intense joy we find the English breakfast some- 
what patterned after our own. The Englishman eats a substan- 
tial morning meal; he has fruit, a cereal, followed by a rasher 
of broiled bacon or a mutton chop, potatoes, toast and marmalade 
(always orange marmalade) and tea. Our first English break- 
fast, — how we do enjoy it. 

We have no difficulty finding our way around in London. 
We had fear we would become hopelessly confused, but we are 
not. It is a very compact city. Double-deck tram motors convey 
the traffic by the thousands. You never saw so many trams in 
your life. Of course London trams are conveyances that take 
the place of our electric street cars at home. They are built 
much on the order of a large bus, but have two stories; the 
second or top story having seats for passengers, reached by a 
narrow winding staircase running one end of the bus. You 
have to hang on with a good grip and climb up on top, but it 
is well worth the effort, for one can spend hours upon hours of 
enjoyment riding on the top of London trams and watching 
the stream of humanity, the endless chains of taxis, motors, 
trams and vehicles of every description that thread the busy 
thoroughfares of this great bustling beehive. 

We spend two or three days in this way, taking a different 
tram each day, going clear to the extreme confines of the city 
in every direction. We get a good glimpse of the London 
suburbs — the pretty little homes, with well-kept lawns and 
hedges, on the outskirts of this great city. 

We spend one day at Westminster Abbey, the world famous 
burial place, where the Kings and Queens and great men and 
women of English history sleep their long last sleep. It would 
take pages to describe the thousand and one things of interest 
in the wonderful old Abbey. 



100 



The Land Across the Sea 




Buckingham Palace, Lo-xdu-x 



The Land Across the Sea 



101 




Westminster Abbey 



102 



The Land Across the Sea 




St. Paul's Cathedral, London 



The Land Across the Sea 103 

Sunday we go to St. Paul's Cathedral. It is one of the oldest 
Catholic cathedrals in London, and here is where we find the 
tomb of the Duke of Wellington. It is a magnificent edifice. 
In the afternoon we take a drive and see Buckingham 
Palace, the city residence of King George and Queen i\Iary of 
England. It is a stately, imposing building on the exterior, and 
we are told that Buckingham Palace and Windsor Castle are two 
of the finest palaces in Europe. 

Of course we are all anxious to visit the London shops and 
see how they compare with those in Paris and other foreign 
cities. To our surprise they are much more interesting than 
the French shops and are better equipped structurally. We find 
Self ridge 's store an almost exact counterpart of Marshall Field 's 
store in Chicago, the only difference being a building on a little 
smaller scale, but still a colossal building and establishment. 
Even the plate glass windows and exterior of the building is a 
miniature of the Field store. The windows are tastefully deco- 
rated and the goods harmoniously arranged and displayed 
to the best advantage. Even a tea-room on one of the upper 
rooms is fitted out like our own at home. We have a jolly 
morning, exploring to our heart's content. We are not coerced 
in any way to purchase, but are waited upon deferentially and 
given good service. We lunch in the tea-room and have quite a 
pleasant little luncheon, save for the fact we had to wait some 
little time owing to the large crowd of guests being served. 
However, we find it a pleasant experience and it reminds us of 
home, and we long for that good old home town, Chicago, more 
than ever. 

Another very fine shop in London is Liberty's. It is a 
specialty house, dealing in the most exquisite fabrics for women 's 
gowns, robes, etc. The windows are elegantly decorated with 
the most magnificent display of beautiful things imaginable. 
There are many other good shops in London, but of course the 
ones that appeal to us the most are the two above mentioned. 
Both of these shops compare favorably with our own in New 
York or Chicago. 

Before it slips our mind, we must speak of a custom in 
England that has made us wonder a little bit. IMaybe we are a 



104 



The Land Across the Sea 




A London Crowd 



The Land Across the Sea 105 

little old-fashioned in our notions, but — well, to get down to 
the point — we notice that every English child wears sox instead 
of stockings, exposing the limb from the shoetop to the knee. As 
the weather is raw and cold we can not resist the temptation 
to speak of this to a saleslady in one of the shops. How the 
subject came up, anyway, was upon inquiry for light woolen 
underwear for our little ' ' kiddy, ' ' who felt the cold winds from 
the English Channel. 

''Union suits of light woolen, please,'^ we ask. 

Little garments to the knee are shown. 

"I want them with the long leg instead of these cut off at 
the knee.^* 

''We don't carry that kind of a garment, madam.'* 

We try several other shops, but none of them carry such 
garments. Finally we can stand it no longer and we inquire 
what the little English "kiddies" do for long-legged underwear 
in the winter. 

"Why, they never wear them," said the saleslady in sur- 
prise. 

"But in the winter?" we gasped in amazement. "You 
don't mean to say that they wear sox and go bare-legged all 
winter ? ' ' 

"Yes, madam, surely," smiles our informant. 

And then we ponder and wonder how these little folk stand 
the cold winds on their little legs. We notice that their little 
shanks are mighty thin, most of them, and we ponder some 
more and wonder how mothers can take such awful chances to 
harden their children by exposing their delicate extremities in 
cold weather. One of the tenderest parts of a child's body, any 
good reliable physician will tell you, is its knees and calves. 
Maybe we are old-fashioned and not up to snuff, but really 
we don't admire the habit of such display of limb by either sex, 
particularly when the child is past the age of three or four. 
Girls eight and ten follow this fashion, and it does not appeal 
to our peculiar American ideas of propriety or health. 

Everyone has afternoon tea in England. Tea is served at 
four o'clock, or a few minutes thereafter, each day. With it is 
served small cakes, sandwiches, muffins, or anything of that 



106 



The Land Across the Sea 




Houses of Parliament, London 



The Land Across the Sea 107 

description; it is a matter of individual taste. It is a fashion, 
or, custom — I guess would be the better word — that is rather 
attractive, — not from the tea-drinking feature of it, but be- 
cause it brings together members of the family in a more inti- 
mate relationship. There is something about eating a bite and a 
sup with a friend or member of the household that chases away 
the blues, brightens one, at least, for a time, and breaks the 
monotony of the day, and, if one is overworked, harassed and 
fatigued, it is restful physically as well as mentally. We had 
our tea carousals, the same as the rest of them, but we found 
that it invariably spoiled our evening dinner. They dine rather 
late in London; they stay up rather late, too, and the conse- 
quence is business does not really begin in the morning much 
before ten o'clock. While London is a busy bee-hive of a city, 
the people do not have that air of hurry and rush that is so 
prevalent in America. They do not scramble along the streets 
as we do in our big cities; they take life easier. No liquor is 
sold after midnight. We went to the Hippodrome one evening 
to see the performance, and after it was over followed the crowd 
to a popular lobster palace for a bite after the theater. At five 
minutes of twelve the lights began to dim and our waiter warned 
us to hurry, as the doors would close and all guests must be gone 
on the stroke of the midnight hour. We couldn't help but 
wonder if the rule was so well enforced in the wicked part of 
London, — that seething maelstrom of vice, that underlying strata 
of a great city. 

We have a delightful drive and visit the many places of 
interest made famous by the great English writer, Charles 
Dickens. The Old Curiosity Shop is one of the sights of the 
city. 

Our time in the great English metropolis is far too short, 
and, to our great regret, we find we must turn homeward. We 
have decided to go home, for the sake of variety and because 
all other lines are crowded, by the English Royal line, sailing 
from Bristol, England, for IMontreal. 

Bristol is known as the cathedral city of England. It is 
situated partly in Gloucestershire, partly in Somersetshire, and 
forms a county in itself. It has many fine suburbs, such as 



108 



The Land Across the Sea 




The Old Curiosity Shop' 



The IjANd Across the Sea 



109 




An Iceberg Just Off the Coast of Newfoundland 



Clifton, on the opposite side of the Avon, and connected with 
Bristol by a suspension bridge 703 feet long and 245 feet above 
high-water mark. 

For three days after sailing we have excellent weather, and 
then we strike the equinoctial gales. Our ship was built for 
Mediterranean service and is far too light and topheavy for 
Atlantic travel, and she rolls and pitches most distressingly 
in the heavy seas. Soon our happy, merry party is turned into 
a disconsolate, wretched crowd, battling with the dreaded raal 
de mer. 

One not familiar with what heavy gales mean on the ocean, 
has not the slightest conception of a storm at sea until he has 
by actual experience gone through it. We are told that our 
Captain has taken the northerly course, which is 150 miles north 
of the route taken by all steamers since the terrible Titanic 
disaster, and there is a vague feeling of unrest among the passen- 
gers when they learn of the northerly course having been taken. 
The reason for this decision was because an iceberg expert was 



no 



The Land Across the Sea 




The Ill-fated Titanic 



on board with a new scientific apparatus to experiment in the 
locating of icebergs in the vicinity of the ship. After three days 
of terribly rough weather we pass out of the gale zone and enter 
the ice fields, just off the coast of Labrador, in the Straits of 
Belle Isle, where we meet our first iceberg. It is about four 
o'clock in the afternoon when the first one is sighted, and the 
passengers are soon hanging over the rail with glasses eagerly 
searching the horizon for a sight of the dreaded monsters of 
the seas. Finally it becomes apparent to the naked eye, and, in 
an hour, we can see it plainly. It is of stupendous dimensions. 
A blue steel-white, glistening in the last rays of sunlight, — a 
most magnificent, but terrifying spectacle. Others follow in 
rapid succession, and we see nine all at one time. The nearest 
one is probably 5 miles away, but we are all uneasy as night is 
fast approaching. By eight o'clock the lookout declares there, 
are no icebergs to be seen, but, to our great distress, a heavy 
fog settles and envelopes us in a gray blanket. Our good Cap- 
tain, known as one of the most careful in the service, instantly 



The Land Across the Sea 111 

stops the ship, and we lay at anchor for four hours until the fog 
has lifted. 

Y/e pass in the vicinity of the grave of the lost Titanic and 
our hearts are deeply touched by the memory of that appalling 
catastrophe, which was never so clearly brought home to us 
until we were actually on shipboard at the mercy of the deep 
and battling with the elements ourselves. 

On the morning of the ninth day we sail into Quebec, 36 
hours late owing to heavy weather; friends and relatives anx- 
iously keeping wires hot inquiring for the ship's arrival. We 
have just passed quarantine, the quarantine boat has slipped 
alongside and we have taken the officers aboard for quarantine 
examination. The first cabin passengers are merely questioned 
by having to fill out a card regarding residence, etc. Second 
and third class and steerage are all personally examined by the 
officers. We gather on our deck to watch the examination of the 
steerage. We see the officers standing at a gateway. The immi- 
grant pauses in front of him and he glances at the person's 
eyes; a half dozen pass through quickly, one after the other, 
after a sharp scrutiny. The sixth man is stopped, given a 
closer examination, and told to stand to one side and remain 
there for further examination. Mothers Avith babes in their 
arms are closely examined, first the eyes, then the children's 
necks, the eyes for the dread trachoma, the necks and faces for 
eruptions denoting contagious diseases, such as scarlet fever, 
smallpox, etc., etc. It takes several hours to examine the steerage 
passengers and by this time there is a line of maybe a dozen 
waiting for a more thorough examination. Their faces are pale 
and frightened; many do not understand the import of it all. 
When it is all over those who are to be further examined are 
taken to steerage quarters and, in many cases, required to 
partially disrobe and a thorough examination given. 

We are all dining in the dining-room Avhen, to our utter 
horror, we are told the ship is turning around, that she has been 
ordered back to quarantine, that there is a case of smallpox in 
the steerage. We are greatly alarmed, not because of the small- 
pox so much as the thought of being quarantined on a Govern- 



112 The Land Across the Sea 

ment island for 30 days. Everyone is too excited to eat; they 
leave the tables and gather on the decks, where the situation is 
speculated upon. A half hour later the ship again turns and we 
learn, to our great delight, we have been told by wireless to 
proceed; that the case is not smallpox after all. The suspected 
persons had been removed by the quarantine boat, and we were 
on our way, in the first place, when the wireless message came 
to "Return to quarantine, smallpox suspected." Half way back 
to the Island another wireless — "Proceed. All O. K.," and we 
are on our way again rejoicing. 

We have made pleasant acquaintances on ship board, and 
there is a feeling of regret for the breaking up of many con- 
genial parties. Au revoir is said, and we see the artistic out- 
lines of the Chateau de Frontenac, at Quebec, on the great cliff 
overhanging the unsurpassable St. Lawrence river. How good 
the familiar scenes of America, our sister nation, Canada, seemed 
to our eyes. The feeling of patriotism for our own blessed land, 
the sight of the glorious stars and stripes. Europe may have her 
historical hunting grounds, for she is the mother of antiquity. 
But give me the blessed land of the stars and stripes, for, in my 
opinion, it is the greatest nation in the world, and I would rather 
be the humblest American citizen walking on American soil 
than the most powerful potentate of Europe. God bless this 
great, new country of ours, for it is surely the land of promise 
and golden opportunity, the melting pot of the world's national- 
ities, where the native sons of every foreign clime are, in the 
space of one short generation, transformed into splendid Amer- 
ican citizenship. One of the greatest faults of our generation 
is the lack of patriotism, which should be instilled in the minds 
of our girls and boys of today — our sons and daughters, the 
youth of today — the men and women of the future. 

Oh, my country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty; God 
bless you to blaze the trail for the good of all mankind. 



APR 38 19ia 



